Health Minister Nadda Calls for Transparency in Drug Regulations to Achieve Global Standards

Nadda urged CDSCO to develop a roadmap with timelines to achieve global standards in its mandated activities.

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, JP Nadda, has emphasized the crucial role of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) in ensuring product quality during a recent high-level meeting on drug, cosmetics, and medical device regulations.

He stressed the need for transparency in procedures to meet global standards.

"For India to uphold our global reputation as the 'Pharmacy of the World', we need a world-class regulatory framework that aligns with our operational scale and international expectations," Nadda stated.

He highlighted transparency at CDSCO and within the drugs and medical devices industry as essential for achieving these standards.

Nadda elaborated, "Both the Drugs Regulatory body and the industry should operate on the highest principles of transparency to ensure that the products manufactured and sold by India meet the highest standards. Continuous dialogue between CDSCO and the industry is vital to address issues and support quality expectations."

During the review meeting, Nadda was briefed on CDSCO's activities, achievements, future plans, and challenges. Updates were provided on the scheme for strengthening the state drug regulatory system, launched in 2016 with a budget of INR 850 Cr during his earlier tenure.

Roadmap for Achieving Global Standards

Nadda urged CDSCO to develop a roadmap with timelines to achieve global standards in its mandated activities. He emphasized a systems-based approach focusing on uniformity, technical upgrades, and a futuristic outlook.

Addressing state-level regulatory variations, he highlighted the importance of enhancing state skills and encouraging alignment with central government quality standards.

Nadda stressed collaboration with states to improve regulatory skills and adherence to national quality standards. He pointed out that state variations in regulations need to be addressed through skill enhancement and alignment with the Central Government's standards.

Health secretary Apurva Chandra, DCGI Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, and senior officers from CDSCO and the Union Health Ministry attended the meeting.

In another development, the Union Health Ministry initiated amending the Drugs Rules to mandate the inclusion of details of excipients in the data stored on drug formulation product labels as bar codes or Quick Response (QR) Codes.

This move aims to address issues faced by people allergic to certain excipients, allowing them to identify these components in drug formulations before use.