Medium, small, and micro pharmaceutical units in Kangra district are facing a serious crisis. At least nine units have already closed, and several others are on the verge of shutting down. Industry representatives warn that without corrective action, this could weaken the state’s drug manufacturing base and lead to shortages of essential medicines across the nation.
Owners of the affected industries blame the “inspector raj” and the sudden enforcement of revised Schedule M norms, aligned with US standards, for the crisis. They argue that the compliance requirements are not practical for small and micro pharma firms to meet within the limited timeframe.
In Nurpur, four of the seven units have already stopped operations. In Sansarpur Terrace, a former hub of 15 factories, five units have shut down, leaving over 700 workers jobless. The closed factories include Medox Unit 1, Medox Unit Injectable, Abaris Health Care, Rachil Remedies, and Dixon Pharma. Six more units are reportedly close to shutting down.
Industry bodies allege that anonymous complaints by middlemen often result in regulatory crackdowns. These same middlemen later offer contracts for factory upgrades and WHO certification at costs running into crores of rupees.
Pharma manufacturers also said they are forced to pay between Rs 3 lakh and Rs 10 lakh annually as “protection money” to avoid harassment, particularly in Kangra and Una districts. They have demanded a three-year grace period to upgrade their facilities, a 10-year compliance roadmap, subsidised loans of Rs 10 crore per unit, and an invesigation into the alleged nexus between brokers and regulatory officials.
Additional requirements like bio-availability and bio-equivalence (BA/BE) studies costing around Rs 30 lakh per product, are also hitting small firms hard. Manufacturers claim that the rules favor large pharma houses, and put micro and small enterprises under severe stress.
The Himachal Pradesh Drug Manufacturers Association warns that the “inspector raj” is spreading fear across the sector. “This is not ease of doing business,” the association says. It adds that around 400 units in Himachal could close if no relief measures are taken. Around 2,000 workers in Kangra district alone are likely to lose their jobs.
Micro, small, and medium firms contribute nearly 40 per cent of the country’s drug production. Their collapse could cause medicine prices to rise sharply and create a severe shortage of drugs nationwide.
Also Read: Wipro shuts down Baddi unit in Himachal, lays off 80 employees
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