Eli Lilly plans five launches in India

Global pharmaceutical major Eli Lilly is exploring the possibility of introducing more products from its global portfolio in India.

"The decision will depend on the market feasibility, disease profile and a host of other parameters. The company plans to launch four to five new products during the current year," Sandeep Gupta, chairman and managing director, Lilly India, said. According to him, the size of the Indian operations, which had a sales turnover of $40 million in 2006, will be doubled within the next four years.

New products along with the growth of existing products would help the company achieve the target, he added. The company introduced Alimta (pemetrexed), an anti-cancer drug in the country last year.

Lilly is yet to introduce any of the CNS (central nervous system) products in India. Gupta declined to specify if such products would at all find place in Indian market.

The global pharma major, which derives 60 per cent of its Indian revenues from the insulin segment, launched a special campaign "Peaks and Valleys Complications Check Camp" for increasing awareness and reducing complication among diabetes patients in the country.

The programme, to be carried out through 2,500 doctors in 50 cities over a period of three years, is expected to benefit 50,000 patients.

Announcing this, Gupta said: "The campaign will see physicians providing free comprehensive checkup that includes test for checking nephropathy (kidney), fundoscopy (eye problems) and foot examination with a biothesiometer to check for peripheral neuropathy".