Context: Afghanistan first country to recognize Indian Pharmacopoeia
- The quality, efficacy and safety of the medicines are important from the healthcare perspective.
- In order to ensure the quality of medicinal products, the legal and scientific standards are provided by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) in the form of Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP).
- IP is an officially recognized book of standards as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules 1945 thereunder.
- As per, the Second Schedule of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, IP is designated as the official book of standards for drugs imported and/or manufactured for sale, stock or exhibition for sale or distribution in India.
- The IP specifies the standards of drugs manufactured and marketed in India in terms of their identity, purity and strength.
- Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) is an Autonomous Institution of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India formed in the year 2009
- The IPC’s mission is to promote public and animal health in India by bringing out authoritative and officially accepted standards for quality of drugs including active pharmaceutical ingredients, excipients and dosage forms, used by health professionals, patients and consumers.
- IPC also develops IP Reference Substances (IPRS) that act as a fingerprint for identification of an article under test and its purity as prescribed in the IP monographs.
- IPC publishes official documents for improving Quality of Medicines by way of adding new and updating existing monographs in the form of Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP).
- It further promotes rational use of generic medicines by publishing National Formulary of India.
