Government has extended the Validity of the Import License along with the registration certificate by six months. This step has been taken to make sure the medicines are available in the country. On July 27 2020, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare gave a notification affirming that drug supply should not be affected and it should remain accessible to the public. So, due to the ongoing pandemic, COVID-19 pharmaceutical companies have wished for extending the validity of the registration certificates for about six months.

Thus, exercising the powers deliberated by section 26B under Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, the central government directed a notice, without withstanding anything in the rule 28A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 for drugs import for the sole purpose of sale or distribution. That if an existing registration certificate holder as per given rules applies for a fresh registration certificate before expiry of the present, the present certificate will remain valid till further orders are passed. To keep the medicine available amid prevailing Covid-19 in the country, the government gave a six months extension of validity of the drug import license.

As per the gazette notification by Ministry of Health and Family welfare released on the date November 26 2020, there are various import license in existence whose validity period is going to expire very shortly and in the other hand, various pharma companies are making a request to extend the import license validity for about six months because of covid-19. Taking all this into consideration and in a view not to affect the availability of medicines for the public the whole decision was taken.

According to Dr Viranchi Shah who is the national vice president of IDMA, this step of extending the validity of import license by six months by Government is one of the welcoming and best steps. It will assist in the maintenance of an incessant inventory of the imported materials, assisting the formulations industry to function very smoothly. The complete order will remain valid for six months from the date it has been published in the official gazette.

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