Earlier this month, India’s government announced changes regarding takeovers of Indian pharmaceutical companies by international firms to protect against internationals controlling the sector. Brownfield proposals, which are the proposed pharmaceutical company acquisitions by foreign firms, will be monitored for six months by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board. The Competition Commission of India will establish regulations on mergers and acquisitions during this time and will handle brownfield proposals after the six-month period. Some organizations had expressed concern that no limits on multinational takeovers would lead to the prices of drugs being determined by just a few firms. The government said that greenfield proposals, which are based on 100% foreign direct investment, will face no additional scrutiny. The government had not previously differentiated between brownfield and greenfield projects regarding takeovers by foreign firms.

Source: LiveMint.com