Shares of Mankind Pharma and Zydus Lifesciences fell up to 2.5% on Thursday after a Supreme Court order. The court directed the Centre to form a three-member committee to examine if statutory rules are needed to stop pharma companies from giving gifts and incentives to doctors to influence their practices.
Shares of Mankind Pharma, Zydus Lifesciences, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and other pharmaceutical companies fell in morning trade on Thursday after the Supreme Court directed the Centre to constitute a three-member committee to examine whether statutory regulation is needed to curb unethical practices by pharmaceutical companies, including offering gifts and other incentives to doctors.
Mankind Pharma was trading at Rs 2,424 on the NSE, down 3.04%, at 11:50 am. Zydus Lifesciences fell 2.49% to Rs 1,124.30, while Dr. Reddy's Laboratories declined 1.20% to Rs 1,189.40.
Cipla fell 1.77% to Rs 1,303.70, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals declined 0.82% to Rs 2,263.60 and Lupin was down 0.74% at Rs 1,998.10.
Torrent Pharmaceuticals fell 1.67% to Rs 4,637.60, while Alkem Laboratories declined 0.28% to Rs 5,335.50. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries was down 0.26% at Rs 1,776.30.
A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta passed the order on a petition seeking statutory regulation of pharmaceutical marketing practices to curb unethical interactions between drug companies and doctors.
The court had reserved its order after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed it that the Union government would constitute a three-member committee to examine whether a statutory framework was needed to regulate such practices and, if so, what form it should take.
The Supreme Court had earlier questioned whether the Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (UCPMP), 2024 had sufficient enforcement mechanisms and whether the government intended to give statutory backing to the code.
During the hearings, the Centre said the existing regulatory framework provides for disciplinary action against doctors who accept gifts, travel facilities, hospitality or monetary grants from pharmaceutical companies. However, on regulating pharmaceutical companies themselves, the government decided to set up the committee to examine the need for statutory regulation.