The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 9th December 2021 has published the Drugs (7th Amendment) Rules, 2021 to further amend the Drugs Rules, 1945.
The Amendment is brought under rule 43A, which allows import of drugs into the country through Inland Container Depot at Dhannad and Tihi.
Rule 43A states that no drug shall be imported into India except through one of the following places, namely Ferozepore Cantonment and Amritsar railway stations in respect of drugs imported by rail across the frontier with Pakistan.
Ranaghat, Bongaon and Mohiassan railways stations in respect of drugs imported by rail across the frontier with Bangladesh.
Petrapole Road in West Bengal, Sutarkandi in Assam, Old Raghna Bazar and Agartala in Tripura in respect of drugs imported by road from Bangladesh. Raxaul in respect of drugs imported by road and railway lines connecting Raxaul in India and Birganj in Nepal
Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Cochin, Nhava Sheva, Kandla and Inland Container Depots at dhannad and Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu and Marmugao port in Goa and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh in respect of drugs imported by sea into India.
Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Goa, Bengaluru and Visakhapatnam in respect of drugs imported by air into India.
However through this amendment, the ministry has allowed import of drugs into the country through Inland Container Depot at Dhannad and Tihi in Madhya Pradesh based on Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) recommendation.
