FOR AFFORDABLE HEATLHCARE: Vice-Chancellor of Visvesvaraya Technological University K. Balaveera Reddy inaugurating a symposium on Drug discovery and process research in Belgaum on Friday.

Belgaum: The three-day second international symposium on "Drug discovery and process research (DDPR)-2006" took off on an optimistic note with speakers reassuring to strive to encourage research and development and expedite industry-institution links to ensure production of new and good quality drugs.

The symposium was organised by city-based KLE Society's College of Pharmacy and the Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Kolhapur. About 50 speakers and resource persons including medical scientists from different parts of the world and 800 delegates from all over India are participating in the event.

Vice-Chancellor of Visvesvaraya Technological University K. Balaveera Reddy, who inaugurated the symposium, said research and development is vital for progress not only of the industry but also national economy. However, efforts in that direction in the country have not been to the required level. He said the industry should discover new chemical entities to augment the national health programmes and gain international recognition. This calls for greater interaction between industry and academia, which has been dismal, with the only exception from some laboratories of the Council of Scientific Industrial Research.

Stating that India has been in the forefront in medical discoveries from time immemorial, Dr. Reddy underscored the need for documenting the traditional and Ayurvedic drugs and formulations, to give a new perspective to drug research, discovery and process research.

The pharmaceutical industry is small but a lifeline venture and has grown at a fast pace than any other sector in the last four decades, Dr. Reddy said.

KLES Chairman Prabhakar Kore, MLC, said pharmaceutical technology and pharmaceutical industry are all set for rapid expansion. The Indian pharma industry ranks fourth in terms of volume and 13th in terms of value. The products of the Indian industry are exported to more than 200 countries, he added.

F.G. Kathawala, Executive Director (retd.), Sandoz/Novartis Research Institute, New Jersey, USA, said pharmaceutical companies are facing major problems forcing mega mergers. The issues involving drug manufacturing have been put in pipeline but the efforts failed owing to issues such as "toxicity."

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