1 step forward - 2 steps back

Indian organised retailing which is growing by an annual 20 per cent,opening India's market to foreign players will not only help consumers but also the small kirana stores. It will reduce wastage across the food supply chain and strengthen the country's position as a sourcing hub besides increasing employment. They will also benefit unorganised trade. After some sustained political pressure from opposition and its allies (TMC and AIADMK) Government as usual cave in and decided to have all-party meet by holding back entry of FDI in Retail and Multiretail formats today. By doing this UPA Govennment once again proved how weak and spineless it is when it comes to harsh but common man friendly policy implementation decision.

After showing some sensitivity towards farmers and common mans' plight due to inflation burder, Government allowed 100% FDI in retail chains and 51% multi-retail chains. Further, it supplemented decision with another sensible move by asking these chains to procure 30% from Indian SMSEs' which will bolsten our manufacturing sector with much needed technology and monetary power. Strong lobbying from trader association across states ( Mom-n-Pop store contributes Rs.60,000crs to UPs' revenue) halted not only wheel of progress but once again plight of farmers and Common man for win-win deal got thwarted out.

Dear Mr.Prime Minister should we take it as "One step forward towards realizing comman man's dreams and Two step back by bringing same common man grounded for realty check of how spineless your elected government is and more than getting concerned about your plight government is concerned about its 5-years stay at Delhi !

Inclusive Growth in Healthcare Sector - Can Government?

Nowhere is the idea of innovation for inclusive growth more important than in Healthcare.Budget 2011 has let down the healthcare sector,which has not seen anything concrete beyond the increase in allocation and the extension of health insurance to NREGA workers.Instead of taking important measures such as extending health insurance to all and augmenting the healthcare infrastructure and expanding an integrated healthcare system to ensure affordable and accessible healthcare,the government opts to bring services in air-conditioned hospitals into the tax net.While the proposal has been rolled back owing to protests,the step indicates a disturbing mindset.It appears to suggest that the common Indian must be excluded from any improvement in her life.The government must bear in mind that air-conditioning in hospitals is a necessity and not a luxury: it is required for a functioning operation theatre,it is needed for quality diagnostics.By its decision,the government seems to be condemning the Mango People to go to a hospital with substandard infrastructure.Instead,the government can focus on creating a health insurance policy that can help the Mango people afford a good quality private hospital one that is air-conditioned.

To make the promise of inclusive growth a reality,Government,in Partenrship with Industry,must adopt a metrics-driven approach,Aggressive Reforms Incetivise R&D in healthcare sector and not be deterred by any compulsion,political or otherwise.The solution lies in political will and robust leadership at all levels of the Industry and government.

Where is the Pharmaceutical Industry Heading?

When is the last time we heard about a new drug discovery in the Indian pharma industry? Being the world's second-largest market by volume [13%], the Indian Pharmaceutical Industry is likely to lead the manufacturing sector of India in a few years' time. With the introduction of the Patents Act in 1970 by which the composition patents from food and drugs were removed, the multinational companies streamed out of the market due to lack of patent protection and the Indian firms flourished from then on. However, there are certain grave concerns that pull back the growth momentum of the industry.
Despite the fact that a huge proportion of the world's active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) come from India, the Indian pharmaceutical industry has been haunted by a culture of compliance problems, fraud and endangering patient's lives. Professionalism and ethics have taken a backseat in the growing industry of late. Inadequate regulation and large quantities of spurious drugs have been a problem for the industry since ages.

One of the main inadequacy of the Indian pharma industry is the lack of Research and Development support. An underdeveloped new molecule discovery program has been noted as its primary weakness. Even the market leaders such as Ranbaxy and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories spent only 5-10 percent of their revenues on R&D whereas the western pharmaceuticals like Pfizer sets a research budget greater than the combined revenues of the entire Indian pharmaceutical industry.

The country also lacks way behind in qualified molecular biologists when compared to the western industry. Due to the disconnect between curriculum and industry, pharmas in India also lack the academic collaboration that is crucial to drug development in the West.

Biotech plays a big role and acts as pharma's little sister in India. The Indian biotech market is dominated by biopharmaceuticals; 75 percent of 2004-5 revenues came from biopharmaceuticals, which saw 30% growth last year. Inadequate funding for the biotech sector poses a major challenge for the startups in India. The major sources of funds are the government grants and venture capital for the industry. While government grants are difficult to secure, the venture capitalists hesitate to invest due to the expensive and uncertain character of the industry in India.

As in many other industries, the Indian pharmaceutical industry too is witnessing a reverse brain drain of late, and the industry should move forward with the knowledge and experience of these foreign-trained scientists and with the abundance young talents within the country.

"Pharma Industry using social media resources to do something great for patient advocacy groups.”

Let’s face it. The pharma industry has a lot of resources at its disposal. That’s one of the big criticisms from the public. They don’t like to see their prescription prices increase while they also see more and more commercials for drugs on TV. To them, the solution is obvious: cut the commercials and you can cut the price. Of course, these commercials aren’t cheap; a lot of resources go into making and airing them. At the same time, pharma and healthcare companies have talented people with deep knowledge in specialized areas like government regulations, marketing, pricing and access, managed care, and, of course, medical. And when pharma companies go public with something, people hear about it.

Why not use all of these resources for something more than marketing? Why not use it to create something that’s bigger than your products? Advocacy groups can use your help and you’re looking for a way to reach patients. Instead of figuring out all the legal issues with marketing your product via social media, why not use social media simply to help an advocacy group with their efforts? The benefit to pharma and healthcare companies should be clear. This eliminates many of the legal issues everyone worries about (no fair balance required if you’re not talking about a product), improves the company’s skill and knowledge about social media, and might actually generate some positive PR. Oh yes, and it’s helping an important cause. Some companies have dabbled in this a little bit, but most try desperately to connect the program with their product. Resist this temptation for once and see what happens.

Role of Social Media in Pharmaceutical Industry

"Social media is a great opportunity to hear directly from patients so that Indian Pharmaceutical companies improve products.”

 

Indian Pharmaceutical companies wouldn’t be the first in the world to do this. Starbucks and Dell are two that have used this concept effectively. They let people submit their suggestions for improving a product, the public votes on their favorites, and then the company actually does those things that have risen to the top of the list. Think about how great this is for everyone. Customers get a place for their voices to be heard and can see that the company is listening and taking their suggestions seriously. The company gets this positive sentiment, but it also gets product engineering, marketing, production, and operations advice…for free. The next big innovation might not come from your lab, but rather your customers.

 

For pharma, this might mean a suggestion on how to better explain how your product works, a formulation recommendation, or something simple, but with a major impact. Consider when J&J added different color options to it’s popular OneTouch blood glucose monitors. Sales went through the roof all because of a different color shell. While I don’t know for sure, I’d venture to guess that this idea came from a diabetic somewhere. Create a process around this concept and we’ll have a continuous stream of new ideas and innovations.

Personal Security Guards - To Protect Minister's or To clean their Footware?

As a child, I heard my grandfather saying, "The  more you bend for a person, the same would make you bend even more for his comfort and will treat you like a slave."

The case of Padma DSP Padma Singh, Person Security guard of Ms. Mayawati, CM of Uttar Pradesh is a standing  example.

Mr. Singh was seen cleaning Ms. Mayawati’s footware with his hankerchief after she got down from cushioned seats [which even Our PM would  envy] of her Mini-Chauffer [Here Helicopter]  on to the sand and garbage filled land of people for whom she promised, like most other politicians, clean and hygienic living conditions.

What is noteworthy here is that the dignitaries, who came to receive and welcome C.M,; were mere spectator and simply stood watching the inhumane treatment given to a Honorable person, who must have given his precious life in the service of humanity. None spared a thought of bringing the same to the attention of their BUSY CM.

When the issue was raised by our Media,CM’s Party members downplayed the issue and blatantly defended CM saying, Mr. Singh’s Hankerchief had fallen down  and he had bent to pick it up  and NOT FOR CLEANING CM’s FOOTWEAR not for cleaning the footwear of CM. What really surprises me here is that would a normal human-being like you and me requires more than half-a-minute to pick his one Hankerchief which is lying next to our leg?  

Day is not far away, when on one bright Sunny Day not only Public Servants but also our brave soliders on Border would be asked to wipe sweat from the faces of our so-called “Public Servant”.

Cricket World Cup Dream

On Paper, Level-Headed and Fearless 15 Fit, Men-In-Blue going to fight for Identity, Pride and Smile of 1.16 billion Indians.Come Feb 19,2011, Lets cheer for them!