Maharashtra cabinet clears way for Rs 137 crore FDA upgrade

MUMBAI, JAN 2017:

The cabinet on Tuesday approved the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposal for an upgrade, paving the way for a huge inflow of funds to strengthen the state's drug regulatory mechanism. It is likely to receive grants to the tune of Rs 55 crore from the state and another Rs 82 crore from the Centre to build infrastructure and set up laboratories.

The first stage of the proposal comprises plans to build drug and food testing labs in Nagpur, Pune and Nashik. "Currently, we can test around 6,000 drug samples annually for their quality. With a boost in testing facility, the testing capacity can be pushed to 20,000 samples," said FDA commissioner Harshadeep Kamble.

The department has to sign an MOU with the Centre, which has allocated Rs 750 crore as part of a national scheme to upgrade FDAs across states.

Maharashtra has got a lion's share of the money by virtue of having nearly 75,000 retail establishments.

An FDA official said that the money will also be used to hire technical expertise though the proposal currently does not speak of increasing sanctioned posts of drug inspectors or analysts.

"There is a separate proposal to increase the strength of drug inspectors. Besides infrastructure, the funds will also be used to procure vehicles to ensure better mobility for the officers to carry out inspections," said the official. The Times of India