Hold meeting to ensure supply of Tocilizumab: HC

New Delhi: In view of the "acute shortage" of Tocilizumab which is prescribed to a large number of COVID-19 patients, the Delhi High Court has directed the Union Health Ministry and Department of Pharmaceuticals to hold a meeting with Roche India, which sells the drug here, to ensure immediate supplies of the medicine.

Justice Prathiba M Singh said the officials of the ministry and the department shall hold a meeting with representatives of Roche India and its distributors here "to communicate and assess the demand for this drug in India".

"They shall also discuss the modalities for import and supply of the drug as per the expected demand and further logistics for placing orders for the same," the court said in its May 6 order.

It passed the order after Roche told the court that it has no confirmed orders from the central government and was not aware of the actual demand in India.

The court said the minutes of the meeting, to be held on Friday afternoon, shall be placed before it by May 9 evening.

The court also directed central government standing counsel Anurag Ahluwalia, appearing for the ministry, to obtain instructions from the Office of the Controller General of Patents and place on record the documents relating to the patents that have been granted, if any, in relation to Tocilizumab along with the working statements filed in respect of the said patents.

A direction was also issued to Roche to file an affidavit confirming that it would be importing in India 50,000 and 25,000 vials of the medicine in mid-May and mid-June, respectively. On this aspect Roche said that its distributor/licensee –Cipla Ltd –would have better information regarding distribution and supplies and urged that it too be made a party in the matter.

The court allowed the request and made Cipla also a party in the matter and listed it for hearing on May 10.