Prices of essential, government-controlled medicines in India — such as life-saving cancer, diabetes, and cardiac drugs — will go up by 1.7%, official sources say. The increase falls in the controlled list of medicines that are governed under the Drug (Prices Control) Order, 2013 (DPCO).

Key Highlights:

Price Hike on Life-Saving Medicines

• A 1.7% hike has been sanctioned for controlled category medicines.

• The medicines include those for cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular ailments, and antibiotics.

• The price revision will be seen after about 2-3 months, considering current stock with retailers amounts to around 90 days of sale.

Relief for Pharma Industry

• Increased raw material prices and operational costs led to the revision.

• Rajiv Singhal, General Secretary of All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), stated the increase provides "some relief to the industry."

Concerns Over Price Violations

• A Parliamentary Standing Committee raised repeated violations by pharma firms.

• As of March 6, 2025, 307 cases of overpricing were reported under Paragraph 20 of DPCO, which regulates non-scheduled drugs.

• These violations point to increasing concerns regarding medicine affordability for the public.

Savings from NLEM Revisions

• The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) 2022 contributed to lowering prices of several scheduled drugs.

• This re-pricing has resulted in savings of ₹3,788 crore annually for patients, according to the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.

Role of NPPA

• The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), which comes under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, determines ceiling prices for scheduled medicines.

• These medicines have to be sold by manufacturers at or below the predetermined ceiling price (along with GST).

• NPPA also fixes retail prices for new drugs coming to the market.

Leaders or Officials' Statements
"It will benefit the pharma industry in terms of price increase because the cost of raw material and other expenses is rising day by day, thus giving some sort of relief to the industry."
— Rajiv Singhal, General Secretary, AIOCDAlthough the 1.7% price increase is a relief to pharma companies, patient affordability continues to be a concern. Regulators such as NPPA will remain vigilant on compliance, but previous infractions indicate that stricter enforcement is necessary. It will be essential for India to balance industry viability with public health imperatives as it manages increasing healthcare expenses.