Thaindian News

New Delhi, May 11 (IANS) An Indian generic drug, which has got regulatory approvals in the US, Britain, EU, Canada and Australia, can now access the Singapore market without going through the same process again.
India and Singapore signed an agreement to this effect Tuesday.

Commerce Minister Anand Sharma signed with his Singaporean counterpart Lim Hng Kiang a “special scheme for registration of generic medicinal products from India” to fast-track the registration process for Indian generic medicines in the southeast Asian country.

“This agreement will facilitate early registration and approval of Indian generic medicines in Singapore,” Sharma told reporters here at a joint press conference with the visiting Singapore minister for trade and industry.

“If any Indian (generic) drug has been cleared in the US, Canada, EU, Britain and Australia, we will allow it into our markets. Accordingly, the registration process will become faster,” Lim said.

Generic drugs are those which are produced and distributed without patent protection. The drugs may have a patent on the formulation but not on the active ingredient.

These medicines have to undergo regulatory systems and obtain necessary clearances before they gain market access in a country.

With this pact with Singapore, India, which produces one-fourth of the world’s generic medicines, will have greater market access for its off-patent drugs in the southeast Asian country, Sharma said.