NEW DELHI :
India has received requests from Russian companies for urgent supplies of drug ingredients and medical devices, a top official at the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) said.
The request from Russia to Pharmexcil, the government agency for the promotion of pharma exports, through the Indian Embassy in Moscow, has come as Russia faces Western sanctions over its Ukraine invasion.
The country’s drug exports promotion body received a communication from the embassy seeking supplies from Indian firms for essential medicines and medical equipment.
“Pharmexcil is in receipt of a communication from the Indian embassy in Moscow that various companies related to the pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and associated equipment are enquiring about the supplies from India. While some of them required assistance in getting suppliers of some particular pharmaceuticals, others are interested in distributing them,” according to a 7 April letter from Pharmexcil to its members. “Members interested in these opportunities may directly reach out to the companies referred in the attachment,” the communication said.
According to the Pharmexcil communication, the Russian firms are New Technologies, Pharmamed Co, Appolo, Pharmstandard and Simkodent. Russia is India’s fourth-largest drugs export destination. India exported medicines worth more than $591 million to Russia in FY21, a 7% increase from the previous year. The provisional figures for pharma exports are $597 million for 2021-2022.
Recently, State Pharmaceuticals Corp. of Sri Lanka had also reached out to Pharmexcil to “sensitize” its members on the need to ensure medical supplies to the crisis-hit island nation.
Pharmexcil officials said that it is very rare to get such requests from Russia.
“It is for the first time that Russia has asked for supplies of pharmaceutical goods from India. Earlier, Russia never used to make such requests to India for pharmaceutical items because they used to get the supply from European countries. Further, Russia is capable of manufacturing many pharma items. We usually get such export requests from African countries, the WHO, Sri Lanka, etc.,” said Uday Bhaskar, director-general, Pharmexcil.
However, it is not unusual for countries in distress to turn to India, which has become a significant supplier of vaccines and drugs worldwide.
Besides medicines, Russia is also looking for medical devices used in the surgical departments for newborns and premature babies, paediatric urology and andrology, neurosurgical, trauma and surgery, dental, anaesthesiology and resuscitation, operating room, and intensive care and maxillofacial surgery. “Russia is exploring different markets for imports of pharma goods,” said an Indian government official, requesting anonymity.
Queries emailed to spokespeople for the Russian Embassy in New Delhi, the department of pharmaceuticals, and India’s ministry of commerce and industry remained unanswered till press time.
Russia has also reached out to Indian retailers and agro exporters with its departmental stores running out of supplies, as the European Union has stopped supplies. Russia has also urged Indian agro and processed food manufacturers and retail associations to set up a joint India-Russia agro-industrial park in Lotos, the special economic zone in Astrakhan, southern Russia, for producing groceries and spices and other foods to minimize the country’s dependence on food and agro imports.
“We expected more exports in FY22, but there is only a marginal increase due to war-related disruptions. I am very positive that our exports to Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States will increase in FY23,” Bhaskar said.
