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 The Federation of Pharmaceutical Entrepreneurs (FOPE) has urged the Union ministry of chemicals and fertilizers to urgently intervene into the operations of the Pharmaceuticals & Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) to safeguard supply chain and MSME (micro small and medium enterprises) stakeholders.
We are the vendors of PMBI for supplies of various products, and a responsible pharmaceutical manufacturers association, with large membership of MSMEs which are associated with PMBI, a flagship initiative under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) aimed at making quality generic medicines available at affordable prices to the masses, said Harish Jain, president, FOPE in his communication to the ministry of chemicals and fertilisers.
Over the last few months, there has been an alarming slowdown in the functioning of PMBI, severely affecting all associated stakeholders, especially MSME suppliers like members of this association, who are deeply committed to this national cause, being suppliers of this flagship programme of Prime Minister of India, he added.
Sharing a background and the current scene of the crisis, Jain said that since the completion of tenure of the previous CEO of PMBI over three months ago, there has been a leadership vacuum. While an officer has been given additional charge of the post on an ad-hoc basis, we regret to state that due to certain internal hierarchical and administrative limitations, this arrangement has not resulted in effective discharge of responsibilities.
Following this, some critical issues have emerged. These are that there is no processing of payments for supplies already delivered under valid contracts. There are no fresh orders or procurement tenders being released to existing vendors. Also, the lack of communication and coordination, leading to operational uncertainty. In addition, there is an inventory pile-up and working capital blockage, hitting MSMEs the hardest.
This situation is not only impacting business continuity for the vendors but also undermining the broader objectives of the PMBJP initiative – ensuring affordable medicine availability through over 16,000 Janaushadhi Kendras across India, said Jain.
The FOPE chief went on to press the Department of Pharmaceuticals to immediately appoint a full-time, empowered CEO for PMBI to restore normalcy and accountability in operations. Furthermore, clear all pending vendor dues amounting to few crores of rupees on an immediate basis to ease the financial stress of vendors including large number of MSMEs.
There should be no late delivery penalties levied during this period on any vendors as non-release of payments by PMBI has caused immense damage on working capital cycle of vendors resulting in probable delayed supplies to PMBI.
The Federation looks for resumption of regular procurement cycles and order placements to maintain the medicine supply chain across the country. It also called to consider forming a Vendor Grievance Redressal Mechanism to ensure timely resolution of supplier concerns going forward.
Noting that PMBI has been a beacon of public health innovation and social equity, Jain said, “As vendors, we remain fully committed to supporting the government in achieving its vision. However, the current administrative bottlenecks need urgent resolution to prevent systemic disruption.”
He also called for an urgent appointment be accorded to a small delegation of FOPE to meet the concerned government official to apprise the gravity of the situation.
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