Introduction
The History of medicines shows the approach of the society, changed about illness and disease. The ancient medical tradition include India, China and Egypt. The concept of medical diagnosis and medical ethics was initiated by the Geeks and was written in the Hippocratic Oath in 5th century B.C.
Introduction to Indian medical history
The history of Indian medical can be traced back from 320 to 550 CE. Ayurveda, the subsidiary of the book Atharvaveda, containing prescription of herbs to hail different ailments. The first medical practitioners of India were Sushruta and Chakara. There are 8 different types of medicines according to Auyrveda, namely
• Kayacikitsa for internal diseases.
• Salyacikitsa for surgery.
• Salakyacikitsa for ear, eyes nose and throat.
• Kaumarabhrtya for pediatric.
• Bhutavidya for spirit and phychiatric.
• Agada Tantra for bites and strings.
• Rasayana for rejuvenation.
• Vijikarana for fertility.
There is one more Indian medical practice which got its deep roots during medical period, Unani. Very close to Ayurveda, Unani was progressed during Mughal period. Based on Fire, water, earth and air, the followers advocate these as these elements in the balanced leads to healthy and imbalance cause illness.
History of Indian Pharma Industry
The foundation of Indian pharma Industry dates back during the British rule era. But the production was not done in India rather the produce was imported from other companies using the raw material exported from India. The foundation of pharmaceutical industry dated back in 1901, when the Bengal chemical was established in Calcutta by Acharya P C Roy. This encouraged some more indian pharmaceutical entrepreneurs to come forward and form the first indian pharmaceutical market. At the beginning, the pharma industry could only meet 13 % of the domestic medical needs. But the overseas medical supply was dropped due to Second world war, the need for Indian pharma produce increased, leading to the establishment of more Indian players like Cipla, Zandu, Standard chemical and East Indian pharmaceutical works etc and the demand for the country pharma produce was achieved by 70% before independence.
Post independence scenario
When India gained independence in 1945, the pharma industry was worth of only Rs. 10 crores. Soon Indian gained its popularity ,due to the low cost labor availability and good quality Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients aka API, but still Indian pharma manufacturers have to depends on the overseas R&D labs for the pharma formulations. Many Multination companies have opened their subsidiary plants in India. In today’s scenario, India stands at third place in the world in terms of business volume behind only United Kingdom and Germany. The revenue generated by Indian Pharma companies is mainly by APIs and pharmaceutical formulations. The biggest boon to the Pharma industry was given in 1990s, when the government allowed the Foreign Direct Investment, now the Indian pharma industry can get investment from foreign citizens and companies, this helped in development of R&D labs, procurement of high quality APIs and buying of advanced mechinaries. The Indian pharma industry has grown from Rs. 10 crores to US $ 17.27 Billion.
