Pharmaceutical sector in the times of Covid19 and Modi's environmental draft rules.

What's more important than a few chemicals (like hydroxychloroquine, H2O) in this current uncertain phase of globalization?

The fear of water pollution and dilemma of fair competition in the democracies created an excessive dependence on China for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs). It's important to note that the discharge (industrial effluent) from chemical and drug manufacturers can be treated to reduce the damage on the environment. However, this comes with a price tag which China is not willing to pay. Hence no gold medal for guessing how Chinese drug manufacturers are selling pharma ingredients (APIs) and other chemicals at dirt cheap prices across the borders, killing the local competition in countries like India.

Germany is one of the first to realize the damage done to its environment by its pharmaceutical industry in early 2000s. The European Union led by France brought in strict legislation and regulatory enforcement to save the freshwater lakes to protect their citizens from contaminated water. Because, much of the drinking water in Europe comes from small lakes formed by rainwater unlike in India.

The new legislation by EU Parliament gave their pharmaceutical industry a tough time in competing with India and China on the pricing of the bulk drugs. So, they gradually started shifting their chemical plants from Germany to India. The economic benefit of the new manufacturing bases for export to Europe was clearly visible at the beginning of Mrs Gandhi's UPA-II and so is the pollution of our inland waters. The one thousand lakes of Bengaluru which were once its lifeline, are polluted beyond repair. Thanks to Jairam Ramesh, India stated acting. However, the political intervention was to pressurize the industries to reduce the pollutants by slowing the production of drugs and by unleashing regulatory harassment. This interventionist political approach began in 2010 incentivized Indian pharmaceutical industry to procure more active pharmaceutical ingredients and other pharma raw materials from China than ever before. This was the beginning of India's defeat to China in Pharma sector.

Its Modi's political rally which woke up public consciousness of Indian citizens on water pollution in 2014. India took some baby steps since then by constructing water treatment plants all over the country. In Hyderabad alone, there are plans to put more than 30 wastewater treatment plants into operation by end of 2020, few of them are already setup and running.

Study of eco-toxicology of medicinal substances (PNETOX, 1996) was initially undertaken by the French to improve aquatic habitat to boost its tourism revenue. However, the eco-toxicology study showed the deep flaws in the industrial manufacturing of the drugs which actually support modern way of living. Who knows? A day may come in Bengaluru's future where freshwater habitats like fish would thrive again in the city of lakes.

The fight against water pollution was appearing victorious by early January 2020 when Modi's government came up with draft rules, i.e., Environment (Protection) Amendment Rules, 2019[Draft]. The rules, however much stringent, are also sensible and reasonable. This draft also encourages public scrutiny of the effluents. IDMA (Indian Drug Manufacturers Association) is not happy with the new draft as it seems to increase the burden of transparency and compliance. In this context, COVID19 gave IDMA a leverage to bargain with Modi's government. The letter written to the CK Mishra, MoEFC on 19th March, 2020, was clearly opposing transparency part which the Union government wishes to bring in.

I would like to be more empathetic with IDMA, as IDMA is likely to be apprehensive of new rules (to protect environment) as these will add additional costs to the manufacturers, thereby affecting the price competitiveness.

We, as a society, need to learn that quality and sustainability comes with a price. Circular economy may be costlier than cheap import from a far-off land, but it is worthy to build sustainability through circular economy. Government, Industry, and leading environmentalists should explain this to common public that "Price does not tell the whole story of a quality product".

There is no alternative for IDMA other than being more open and transparent. The 2018 story of Vedanta's Sterlite Copper plant at Thoothukudi clearly shows that Indian public does not trust Industrial houses, which is definitely not a good sign.

Where Social Trust is high, crime and corruption are Low says the Pew Research Center. But how is trust possible without transparency? IDMA should think on that. We as consumers, should encourage circular economy by slightly paying more for the product and for the better environment. It is the government's propaganda machineries job to promote environmental consciousness among consumers and make them aware of the environmental impact for the choices they make.

References:

Limiting antibiotic manufacturing discharge in Indian wastewater

Good Laws Exist – but Laws Alone Won’t Fix India’s Pharmaceutical Pollution

New eco regulations on pharma pollution a boon for Hyderabad