← 9 October 2026's Current Affairs · Economy GA Prelims ★★★★☆ Mains ★★★☆☆
Centre to cap trade margins on non-scheduled cancer drugs at 30 per cent of MRP
ਖ਼ਬਰਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਕਿਉਂ?
Mark-ups up to 700 per cent: the 30% MRP cap on cancer drugs, a GS2 health-pricing question
Trade-margin cap on cancer drugs aims to cut prices sharply.
Why it matters: factual, Prelims-type
What you need to know
2 ਮਿੰਟ
The Centre will cap the trade margin on non-scheduled cancer drugs at 30 per cent of the maximum retail price.
The average trade mark-up on these medicines is now around 170 per cent and reaches 700 per cent in some cases.
The intervention can cut prices by up to 70 per cent of MRP and is estimated to save patients about Rs 2,500 crore a year.
ਸਰੋਤ: Topper IAS editorial (PIB / The Hindu / Indian Express)
ਮੁੱਖ ਤੱਥ
Remember these
- Centre to cap trade margin on non-scheduled cancer drugs at 30 per cent of MRP
- Average trade mark-up on these medicines is now around 170 per cent, and up to 700 per cent in some cases
- The cap can cut prices by up to 70 per cent of MRP
- Estimated saving for patients: about Rs 2,500 crore a year
- Scheduled drugs (under the National List of Essential Medicines) have prices fixed by NPPA under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order; non-scheduled drugs are not price-fixed but are monitored
ਪ੍ਰੀਲਿਮਜ਼ · ਮੇਨਜ਼
How the exam will ask it
ਪ੍ਰੀਲਿਮਜ਼
- The trade margin is the gap between the price at which a drug is sold to the retailer or stockist and its maximum retail price (MRP).
- Non-scheduled drugs are those outside the National List of Essential Medicines, whose ceiling prices are not fixed under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order.
- The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) fixes and revises ceiling prices of scheduled drugs and monitors prices of non-scheduled drugs.
- Under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, non-scheduled drug prices may rise by no more than 10 per cent a year.
ਮੇਨਜ਼
GS2 (Health, Governance) and GS3 (Economy): the issue is steep trade mark-ups on non-scheduled cancer drugs that push up out-of-pocket health spending. The policy response is a 30 per cent cap on trade margins under the drug-pricing framework, expected to cut prices by up to 70 per cent of MRP and save patients about Rs 2,500 crore a year. The way forward lies in strong enforcement and monitoring by NPPA, wider generic and Jan Aushadhi availability, transparency in MRP printing, and balancing affordability with the viability of distributors and manufacturers.
Quick recall
Answer before you reveal
The Centre has decided to cap the trade margin on non-scheduled cancer drugs at what share of the maximum retail price (MRP)?
- 15%
- 30%
- 45%
- 60%
ਜਵਾਬ ਵੇਖੋ
ਜਵਾਬ: B — Correct: 30% — The Centre's decision limits trade margins on these drugs to 30 per cent of MRP, against an average mark-up of around 170 per cent today. • 15% — wrong: A 15 per cent cap would be half the announced ceiling; the decision fixes it at 30 per cent of MRP. • 45% — wrong: A 45 per cent cap is higher than the ceiling announced; the decision sets 30 per cent of MRP. • 60% — wrong: Sixty per cent would barely curb the mark-up and is double the 30 per cent ceiling actually decided.
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