IPMMA Webinar: Time to Collaborate, Co-operate and Innovate to face challenges in Pharma Industry

A report on a pharma sector- centric webinar successfully hosted by IPMMA and Messe Muenchen India

On 16th of April 2020, Indian Pharma Machinery Manufacturers’ Association (IPMMA) in association with Messe Muenchen India, organiser of leading trade fairs like analytica Anacon India, India Lab Expo and Pharma Pro & Pack Expo conducted an extensive webinar focused on the pharmaceutical industry. The webinar was well attended by over 400+ participants from not only India but also countries like Germany, Italy, UAE and Nepal.

The subject of the webinar was “Time to Collaborate, Co-operate and Innovate to face challenges in Pharma Industry” and it was spearheaded by an esteemed set of panellists.

The panel included names such as Dr. Viranchi Shah (Senior Vice President PAN India & Chairman for Gujarat State board of Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA) | Director – Saga Labs), Mr. Paresh Chawla (Chairman for MP State Board of Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA) | MD of Alpa Laboratories Ltd.) and Mr. Shirish Belapure (Senior Technical Consultant at IPA) and was moderated by Mr. Kaushik Desai (Advisor at IPMMA).

The following are short excerpts of the opening statements given by the renowned speakers.

‘When we surpass this challenge, the Indian Pharma industry will prevail’

Dr. Viranchi Shah

This is a unique challenge and it comes with a unique set of situations that nobody in the world has ever seen. This is a pandemic that has affected almost all the industries across the globe and in all sizes. This is a unique challenge and it calls for unique solutions to manage.

I believe, we are the global pharmacy and will bounce back in a short time because of the definite need for pharmaceuticals worldwide. He added, ‘Governments and industries are working together to understand this new challenge’

Mr. Shirish Belapure

This is a new challenge to mankind, thousands of health professionals are battling this virus, putting their lives at risk. Governments and industries are continuously working together to understand and address the challenge. The Government of India has listed pharmaceutical manufacturing as an essential service. The pharma industry needs to act swiftly and promptly to ensure continuity of medical supplies to avoid drug shortages. At the same time, the safety of the workforce should be ensured. He added, ‘We need to end the dependency for raw materials on China and set up our own pharmaceutical API industry’

Mr. Paresh Chawla

The pandemic has clearly shown why India is the pharmacy of the world. The world is looking towards with a lot of expectations for new drug developments and also since the Indian pharma industry is the world leader for generics. These are positive signs for the pharma industry. The biggest challenge faced by the industry is how to manage the supply chain, mitigate the risk by keeping their workforce safe and adhering to the operating procedures. The pandemic is going to change everything and every company needs to find ways to collaborate and innovate.

The Q&A session with panellists on the relevant topics provided information regarding the guidelines of manufacturing, managing supply chain issues and how a company should collaborate and innovate during this pandemic. There was interesting interaction with participants in responding to their queries towards end of the webinar.

The recorded version of the webinar is available online on Youtube on the Messe Muenchen India channel. Webinar: Covid-19 – Time to Collaborate, Co-operate & Innovate to face challenges in Pharma Industry