New Delhi, March 8 -- India's drug price regulator has capped the retail prices of 53 formulations or combinations of drugs used in treating pain, depression, diabetes, heart failure, and auto-immune diseases.

The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority, or NPPA, routinely determines the retail prices of drugs to ensure that essential medicines are available to the public at reasonable prices.

The regulator, in a notification on 5 March, directed drug manufacturers to fix the prices of formulations used in manufacturing the drugs mentioned in its latest directive.

Viranchi Shah, President, Indian Drugs Manufacturers Association, said the regulator's decision to fix prices for drug combinations would help ensure wider compliance.

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