Ranbaxy responds to FDA allegations

Responding to US Food and Drug Administration warning letters and import alerts relating to drugs produced at its Dewas and Paonta Sahib plants, Indian drug major Ranbaxy Laboratories says it is "very disappointed" with the action (Marketletter September 22).

The FDA move effectively bans import into the USA of over 30 medicines the firm makes at these Indian facilities, including the cholesterol-lowerer simvastatin, and is seen as a negative for India's booming pharmaceutical production and testing industries. The country's drug exports are forecast at some $10.0 billion this year, compared with just $1.9 billion in 1999.