Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that Pharmaceutical industry has an important role to play in Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

Interacting with the leaders in the Pharmaceutical industry and Office-bearers of the Pharma Associations through the Video Conference, Mr Goyal lauded the pharma industry for making India proud, by rising to the occasion during the COVID crisis.

He said that India has been recognized as the Pharmacy of the World, as over 120 countries got some essential medicines, during the last two months. He said, the whole world appreciated India’s gesture, and this has swelled India’s goodwill and reputation.

The Minister assured them that the government will fully support the industry's expansion, diversification and strengthening.

Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged pharma industry to manufacture COVID-19 testing kits on a war footing.During an interaction with representatives of pharma companies through video conferencing Mr Modi said, Centre has already approved schemes worth 14 thousand crore rupees for production of critical drugs and medical equipment. During the meeting, Prime Minister reviewed preparations to combat COVID-19 with pharma industry.

He said, this sector has a key role to play in creating a healthier India. Mr Modi expressed hope that pharma industry will not only ensure the maintenance of supply line of essential medicines, medical kits and equipment, but also focus on innovation and cutting edge research.

Pharma companies assured the Prime Minister that India has enough supplies of all essential pharma commodities and there is no reason to worry.Chemists and Pharma companies assured Mr Modi that they will work on the COVID-19 crisis with the government to ensure that supply chains remain working 24x7.

Earlier, Niti Aayog along with top executives of pharma industry and senior government officials discussed ways to boost domestic manufacturing of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), amid concerns over supply disruption from China due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The meeting, chaired by Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, came a day after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will soon announce measures to deal with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the domestic industry.

A host of measures were discussed at the meeting yesterday to boost domestic manufacturing of APIs and reduce dependence on the imports from China. The meeting was attended by Pharmaceuticals Department Secretary PD Vaghela, Biocon's Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Zydus' Pankaj Patel and Dr Reddy's Laboratories' Satish Reddy.