Pharma giants Novartris and Bayer try to break down India's generic resistance...

The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis and German drug maker Bayer are challenging the Indian establishment over the country’s drug-patent rules, an affair that frames the larger confrontation between the global pharmaceutical industry and the governments of the emerging economies.

With pharmaceutical sales growth slowing in the West, multinationals are seeking access in developing markets where rising affluence and rising rates of so-called affluence-related ailments is setting the stage for exponential growth.

PriceWaterhouseCoopers, a consultancy, estimates that from US$12 billion in 2010, Indian drug market trade is likely to rise to US$74 billion by 2020.

 However, legal wrangling over the terms and conditions under which such commerce can thrive has also become commonplace. The situation is particularly significant in India – known as the pharmacy of the developing world -- where big pharma is struggling to forge new avenues for growth. Full story...

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