(a) Indian Pharma Industry has to move from 'volume' to 'value' leadership to capture global market. Discuss. 20 (b) Discuss the…

(a) Indian pharma: from volume to value leadership

India is the largest supplier of generics by volume, meeting about 40 per cent of US generic demand and about 60 per cent of global vaccine supply, but ranks far lower by value, because most output is low-margin generics.

(i) Why value is needed. Generic prices fall under competition and price controls, while patented drugs, biosimilars, complex generics, biologics, cell and gene therapies, and specialty products earn much higher margins. Global markets also demand quality and trust.

(ii) Gaps. India imports about 70 per cent of its bulk drug (API) and key starting material needs from China, which exposes supply chains to shocks. R&D spending is small, about 6 to 8 per cent of sales among leaders, and few novel molecules are discovered. Quality problems, shown by import alerts and warning letters from the US FDA and European regulators, damage reputation. There are also patent and pricing pressures, and skill and infrastructure shortfalls.

(iii) Government measures. The PLI scheme for pharmaceuticals and for bulk drugs, bulk drug parks in Gujarat, Himachal and Andhra Pradesh, the Promotion of Research and Innovation in Pharma MedTech (PRIP) scheme, a revised Schedule M for good manufacturing practice, and the Jan Aushadhi programme.

(iv) Industry. Hubs at Hyderabad (Genome Valley), Ahmedabad and Baddi, strong biosimilar makers, contract research and manufacturing (CRAMS), and ventures into GLP-1 and complex injectable products.

(v) Way forward. Raise R&D and university-industry links, build API self-reliance, meet global quality standards, use regulatory harmonisation and trade agreements, and secure affordability at home while earning more abroad.

The shift from volume to value requires innovation and trust, not just scale.

(b) Floods in the Indo-Gangetic Plain and their management

Problems. The plain is flat, alluvial and densely populated, and its rivers carry heavy monsoon runoff and silt from the Himalaya.

(i) Causes. Heavy monsoon rain and Himalayan snowmelt, shifting channels and silting of the beds, and embankment breaches, as in the Kosi breach of 2008 that displaced millions in Bihar. Encroachment on floodplains, deforestation in catchments, blocked drainage, barrages such as Farakka, and releases from upstream dams or from Nepal worsen it. Urban waterlogging hits Patna, Lucknow and Kanpur.

(ii) Effects. Loss of lives, crops, cattle and homes, damaged roads and embankments, water-borne diseases and displacement, and repeated damage in north Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh and North Bengal. But flood silt also renews soil fertility.

Management.

(i) Structural. Embankments, dams and reservoirs, channel improvement and drainage, with regular maintenance.

(ii) Non-structural. Flood forecasting and warning by the Central Water Commission, floodplain zoning, flood-proofing of villages, insurance, NDMA guidelines and community preparedness.

(iii) Basin approach. Joint planning with Nepal, afforestation of catchments, wetland restoration and integrated river-basin management, and the Flood Management and Border Areas Programme.

Living with floods, through planning and preparedness, is now preferred over control by embankments alone.

(c) Petroleum and international geopolitics, with special reference to India

Petroleum shapes power because modern economies, militaries and trade depend on it, and its reserves are concentrated in West Asia, Russia and the Americas, far from the main consumers.

(i) Global geopolitics. Examples are the 1973 Arab oil embargo, the Gulf wars, OPEC+ production management, sanctions on Iran, Venezuela and Russia, the US shale revolution that has made the US a leading producer, and the Russia-Ukraine war, which rerouted flows to Asia. Chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of world oil moves, and the Malacca and Suez routes are strategic assets. The dollar's role in oil trade and competition for Central Asian and Arctic resources add to this.

(ii) India. India imports about 85 per cent of its crude oil, so prices and supply disruptions affect its inflation, rupee and fiscal position. It has diversified suppliers to Russia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the US and Africa, and bought discounted Russian crude after 2022 while balancing relations with the West. Responses include strategic petroleum reserves at Visakhapatnam, Mangaluru and Padur, overseas equity oil by ONGC Videsh, connectivity through Chabahar, ethanol blending, renewables and a net-zero target for 2070.

(iii) Critical view. Oil is a political lever, but its leverage is declining with the energy transition, shale supply and electric vehicles. India's dependence remains a vulnerability, but it gains from a buyer's market, and real security needs diversification and demand reduction.