New Delhi: In an effort to curb the incremental cost burden arising from the in West Asia, the Centre has announced customs duty exemptions on 40 petrochemical inputs, providing relief to pharmaceutical and medtech manufacturers who rely on these inputs to produce finished goods
The Union Finance Ministry has released the full list of products eligible for customs duty exemption. The temporary measure, effective until June 30, is intended to ensure the continued availability of critical petrochemical inputs for domestic industries.
Welcoming the move, the domestic pharma giants lobby, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) in a statement said, “The ongoing West Asia conflict is having an impact on the timely movement of products and in this difficult situation, we appreciate the proactive efforts to mitigate potential supply-related disruptions.”
Speaking for medical device makers, Rajiv Nath, Forum Coordinator, AiMeD noted, this targeted relief, directly addresses the severe inflationary cost pressures faced by medical devices manufacturers due to supply chain disruptions and will lower input costs for our sector, amid global volatility.
“Raw materials such as Polypropylene, ABS, Polycarbonate, and PVC resin form the backbone of medical consumables manufacturing, and their exemption provides much-needed relief to domestic manufacturers,” Himanshu Baid, MD, Poly Medicure added.
The ongoing conflict in West Asia has delivered a major blow to drug and device manufacturers in India, with the prices of inputs used to make medicines have surged by up to 50 percent as most raw materials are derived from petrochemical feedstocks.
For drug manufacturers, shortages of polymers and PVC have created difficulties in producing low-risk consumables, while a supply shortage of helium gas has disrupted the manufacturing of MRI scanners.
Last month, AiMeD had approached the Union Ministry of Commerce seeking a refund of customs duties on imports to offset the rising incremental cost burden caused by higher freight charges and shortage of goods due to the near‑effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
To further ease cost pressure on manufacturers, industry representatives have reiterated their long-standing demand to lower GST liability on raw materials— APIs, solvents, and reagents— which are currently charged the highest effective rate: 18 per cent.
According to Nath , reducing GST from the current 18 per cent on inputs to 5 per cent would further mitigate war-induced cost escalations and improve the competitiveness of made in India goods in the international market.
Meanwhile, to ensure uninterrupted supply of critical goods, IPA has called for setting an ‘Empowered Committees of Secretaries’ for continuous monitoring and better coordination among all stakeholders.
