Karnal testing lab a booster dose for pharma industry

Parveen Arora

Karnal has become the first district in the state to have a facility to test allopathic, ayurvedic and herbal medicines, cosmetics and food supplements. The medicine testing laboratory started in the common facility centre for the pharma cluster in the industrial area of Sector 3 in Karnal city is a joint venture of the Union and state governments and the Karnal Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Association (KPMA).

This chemical and microbiology laboratory is seen as a shot in the arm for the pharmaceutical industry of the district, which is known as the pharma hub of the region.

The lab constructed at a cost of Rs 12 crore was inaugurated by Industry Minister Vipul Goel in February. It is equipped with latest advanced machines to conduct all kinds of tests. It has started testing samples and industrialists can get their sample reports in just two days. The testing of raw material will also be done here to eradicate the threat of spurious drugs.

In a couple of months, the research and development wing of the laboratory is likely to start the stability study of medicines to ascertain their effectiveness in all types of temperature and humidity.  

The industrialists say that the lab will help the health sector with its accurate and clean services, as earlier they had to send samples to laboratories in other states, which was time consuming. Soon, pharmacy and science graduates and postgraduates will get training in medicine manufacturing and testing free of cost at the common facility centre.

“Karnal has become a pharma hub of the region. With the establishment of the lab, the health sector in the state has been strengthened,” says RL Sharma, president of the KPMA.

He adds that to promote the pharma industry in the district, the state government has planned a Pharma Park on around 100 acres near Taraori. The land for the project has already been identified. Once established, the park will further boost the industry. The medicine testing laboratory will also be beneficial to the pharma industries in the neighbouring states.

The industrialists believe that the state-of-the-art lab and the proposed Pharma Park will generate more jobsfor the youth. “The lab and the proposed Pharma Park are encouraging pharmaceutical industries to return and restart their factories in Karnal. These industrialists had winded up their businesses in Karnal in 2005 and shifted to Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Also, more employment will be generated,” says Rajeev Mukul, chairman of Zee Laboratories. Now, the industrialists need not send samples of medicines to other states for testing and saving time, he adds.

Mukul says the lab will also encourage pharmaceutical companies to make more products. Sharma says that the government has also made a pharma policy to promote the industry.

Land identified for Pharma Park

Karnal has become a pharma hub of the region. With the establishment of the lab, the health sector in the state has been strengthened. To promote the pharma industry in the district, the state government has planned a Pharma Park on around 100 acres near Taraori. The land for the project has already been identified. Once established, the park will further boost the industry. —RL Sharma, president of Karnal Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Association 

Policy to promote industry

The lab and the proposed Pharma Park are encouraging pharma industries to return and restart their factories in Karnal. The lab will also encourage companies to make more products. The government has made a pharma policy to promote the industry. —Rajeev Mukul, chairman of Zee Laboratories