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HDMA seeks Centre's intervention to address issues arising from West Asia crisis
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Gireesh Babu, New Delhi
March 21 , 2026
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The Himachal Drug Manufacturers Association (HDMA), representing around 500 pharma manufacturing units in the State, has sought the intervention of the Central government in addressing the issues including an exorbitant price increase of raw materials and packaging materials, among others, owing to the Middle East crisis. It has requested the government to act on the artificial shortages created by black marketers and strictly monitor the supply chain in order to overcome the crisis.
There has been an unprecedented 200-300% increase in prices of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), solvents, excipients and packaging materials, which is threatening the survival of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the supply of essential medicines in the country, said Dr Rajesh Gupta, state president of HDMA in a representation to the Department of Pharmaceuticals, under the ministry of chemicals and fertilisers. A majority of the units in Himachal Pradesh are in the SME sector.
The price of APIs like paracetamol has increased from Rs. 250 per kg to Rs. 450 per kg in the last 15 days. While this is just one example, raw material prices has been skyrocketing across the categories. Packaging costs are also shooting up and under the circumstances, honouring the orders under the product contracts are becoming difficult, he said.
There is also shortage of materials, created artificially, impacting the daily operations of the MSMEs. There is a risk of shortage of materials, which may result in failing commitments as per the tenders, and shut down of units, ultimately leading to job losses, pointed out the Association. Besides, shortage of LPG for boilers and industrial production as well as domestic LPG shortages may result in labour migration in coming days.
The leaders of the Association requested the DoP to act on implementing a ceiling on the prices of key APIs, solvents, excipients and packaging materials for drug production. Supply chain should be made transparent, stocks from distributors and vendors and GST invoicing should be evaluated, in order to make sure that there are no issues with the supply of these materials.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), under the DoP, should intervene to monitor the prices of APIs, excipients, solvents, Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) and High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) granules, aluminium, craft paper, Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) bottles, glass bottles, among others, and the supply chain.
They also requested the DoP to form an emergency task force with industry representatives and immediate implementation of Essential Commodity Act 1956.
"The MSME pharma sector seeks urgent support to ensure India's healthcare stability," said the Association in its representation. It added that the Association is representing the ground realities to protect the units from scarcity of raw materials. It also requested the Department to find an amicable solution, while punishing the culprits of black marketers who created artificial shortage of the materials in the country.
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