However, analysts say it is not immediately clear if the merger would have any impact on Novartis India, the listed Indian subsidiary of the company.
One of the subsidiaries of Sun Pharma has executed a settlement agreement with Novartis, stipulating a dismissal of the lawsuits filed in the United States against the company regarding submission of an Abbreviated New Drug Application for a generic version of Gleevec, the Indian drug major said in a statement.
The centre is expected to enhance our existing in-house research and development resources.
The offer by Novartis AG is to acquire up to 1,24,64,710 shares, representing a 39 per cent stake in Novartis India, at a price of Rs 351 per share. Earlier in March, the drug firm had said its Swiss parent's open offer for hiking its stake in Novartis India would begin on May 14, but on Friday rescheduled the offer date.
There is a need to incentivise R&D investments, offer corporate tax concessions and establish an effective intellectual property rights regime in order to push the growth of domestic pharmaceutical industry, as per the industry bodies. Outlining the sector's wish list for the upcoming Union Budget, Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI) Director General Anil Matai urged the government to explore methods to incentivise R&D investments, such as deductions on R&D expenses, research-linked incentives for MNCs, and corporate tax concessions.
Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis is buoyant about growth prospects and further protection of intellectual property rights in India, despite the setback it suffered in the patent dispute for its cancer drug Glivec last year.
Voveran, Novartis India's flagship pain killer medicine, has become the largest selling domestic drug with sales of more than Rs 11 crore (Rs 110 million) in March 2008, displacing Pfizer India's cough and cold syrup Corex, which had sales of Rs 10 crore (Rs 100 million). Cipla, on the other hand, maintained its leadership position as the largest domestic pharmaceutical company edging out Ranbaxy Laboratories with a market share of 5.24 per cent.
Novartis India is up in arms against a two-month old decision of the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority to reduce the price of its flagship brand Voveran on public interest grounds. The annual sales of Voveran, the brand name for pain reliever medicine diclofenac, exceed Rs 100 crore and account for one-fourth of the company's total sales turnover. The company has filed a review petition with the chemicals and fertilisers ministry against the authority's decision.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories said on Thursday Novartis has decided to stop further work on an anti-diabetes compound licensed to the Swiss drug maker, the second time in six months that a foreign partner has halted development of the Indian firm's drugs.
In separate statements, the two companies said they will combine Novartis' over-the-counter division with GSK's consumer business, creating a new world-leading consumer healthcare business with $10 billion in annual sales.
Natco Pharma has opposed an application made by Novartis India to the controller of patents, for grant of a patent for an anti-cancer drug 'Imatinib Mesylate'.
Experts say despite it being a global deal, the transaction will have to undergo CCI scrutiny because of the scale of operations.
Supreme Court is saying that consumers should not be forced to pay higher prices just because it is chemically a new drug unless there is a therapeutic benefit involved.
The US India Business Council expressed its unease over the Supreme Court on denying a patent on Glivec and said that this would impact innovation and investment climate in India as a time when the country needs foreign direct investment the most.
Says Indian Patent Law conforms fully with global obligations under the WTO IPR pact-TRIPS.
Oncologist Dr Sthabir Dasgupta talks about the impact of Novartis's losing patent case on the Indian pharma industry.
The Madras High Court on Monday dismissed a petition filed by Swiss pharmaceutical major Novartis AG, challenging the constitutional validity of the section 3 (d) of the Patents (Amendment) Act 2005.
Sector observers refute, call response a bluff.
In a landmark judgment that has the potential to change the direction of India's pharmaceutical business, the apex court said on Monday that the drug failed to qualify for a patent according to Indian law.
Two pharma majors Novartis and Wockhardt have adopted 'wait and watch' policy with regard to opposition over the yet to be granted patent to their respective drugs.
In a landmark judgment that has the potential to change the direction of India's pharmaceutical business, the Supreme Court said on Monday that the drug failed to qualify for a patent according to Indian law.
A meeting of the board of Novartis India Ltd will be held on January 30 to take on record unaudited financial results of the company for the third quarter ended December 31, 2002.
Novartis's famed cancer drug, Glivec, will not get patent protection in India. The apex body on patent and trademark disputes, the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB), has ruled that the drug "lacks innovation" and the high price tag of Rs 120,000 per month per patient would be too high for the common man.
Amid reports of a US Congress probe against India's largest drug maker Ranbaxy Laboratories, data show that many leading multinational companies such as Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis and Merck are also under the scanner of the US drug regulator, for more or less similar violations as Ranbaxy is alleged to have committed.
The venue of the battle by Swiss multinational Novartis AG against the rejection of its patent application for blockbuster cancer drug Gleevac will now shift to the Patent Appellate Board's office.
The board of directors of Novartis India has approved a proposal to sell the Rifampicin bulk drug business, together with its Mahad facility, to Sandoz for Rs 30.77 crore (Rs 307.7 million).
The Norwegian government has intervened in the high-profile case filed by Novartis against Indian patent laws by asking the drug company to withdraw the litigation.
Novartis India Ltd has reported a 83.48 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 113.76 crore (Rs 1,137.6 million) for the fiscal ended March 31, 2004, compared to Rs 62 crore (Rs 620 million) in the previous financial year.
The government of Switzerland will not be taking up the allegation by Novartis that Indian patent law is incompatible with the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights agreement at the dispute settlement board of the WTO.
Novartis India Ltd has posted a net profit of Rs 122 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2002 as compared to a net profit of Rs 175.30 million in the corresponding period last fiscal.
Domestic customers will get access to high-quality Swiss products such as watches, chocolates, biscuits, and clocks at lower prices as India will phase out customs duties under its trade pact with the EFTA bloc on these goods over a period of time. India and the four-European nation bloc EFTA signed a trade and economic partnership agreement (TEPA) on Sunday to boost trade and investments between the two regions. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
Domestic customers will get access to high-quality Swiss products such as watches, chocolates, biscuits, and clocks at lower prices as India will phase out customs duties under its trade pact with the EFTA bloc on these goods over a period of time. India and the four-European nation bloc EFTA signed a trade and economic partnership agreement (TEPA) on Sunday to boost trade and investments between the two regions. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
The government should take measures to promote innovation and R&D while simplifying regulations for the sector in the upcoming Union Budget, as per pharmaceutical industry bodies. Outlining the wish list for the sector in the upcoming Union Budget, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) secretary general Sudarshan Jain said the domestic pharma industry is currently around $50 billion in size and aspires to grow to around $130 billion by 2030 and $450 billion by 2047. "To achieve this vision, the Union Budget 2023-2024 should help fuel innovation and R&D, which will set the pace for propelling the pharmaceutical industry forward," he told PTI.
The judgment will save taxpayers' money without hurting the pharma industry or R&D.
Financial pressure on the parent company triggered the move.
Paul Herrling, global head of Novartis' corporate research, spoke to Business Standard about the changing concepts in R&D and Novartis' strategy.
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