<p>Novartis has taken Biocon to court for infringing the patent on its diabetes drug Galvus, the Swiss drugmaker said in a statement on Thursday.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The Basel-based firm has filed infringement proceedings and is seeking an injunction against Biocon at Delhi’s High Court to try to stop the Indian company launching a generic version of Galvus, also known as vildagliptin.<br /><br />In a hearing that took place on March 28, the Delhi court ordered that Biocon cannot manufacture, sell or export vildagliptin until the next court hearing, Novartis said in an emailed statement.<br /><br />“A robust and predictable intellectual property (IP) system is an essential pillar of an innovative life science industry,” Novartis said.<br /><br />Galvus is one of the company’s best-selling medicines, achieving $1.2 billion in sales last year.<br /><br />In a statement Biocon said it respected all valid intellectual property in India.<br /><br />“Biocon has not been issued any injunction on vildagliptin; nor has Biocon launched the product in India. There is no impact on our immediate plans for this product,” the company said.<br /><br />India’s drug market has proven a headache for Big Pharma, with the government imposing wide-ranging price cuts and authorities overruling patents as they strive to make medicines affordable for the 70 per cent of people living on less than $2 a day.<br /></p>
<p>Novartis has taken Biocon to court for infringing the patent on its diabetes drug Galvus, the Swiss drugmaker said in a statement on Thursday.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The Basel-based firm has filed infringement proceedings and is seeking an injunction against Biocon at Delhi’s High Court to try to stop the Indian company launching a generic version of Galvus, also known as vildagliptin.<br /><br />In a hearing that took place on March 28, the Delhi court ordered that Biocon cannot manufacture, sell or export vildagliptin until the next court hearing, Novartis said in an emailed statement.<br /><br />“A robust and predictable intellectual property (IP) system is an essential pillar of an innovative life science industry,” Novartis said.<br /><br />Galvus is one of the company’s best-selling medicines, achieving $1.2 billion in sales last year.<br /><br />In a statement Biocon said it respected all valid intellectual property in India.<br /><br />“Biocon has not been issued any injunction on vildagliptin; nor has Biocon launched the product in India. There is no impact on our immediate plans for this product,” the company said.<br /><br />India’s drug market has proven a headache for Big Pharma, with the government imposing wide-ranging price cuts and authorities overruling patents as they strive to make medicines affordable for the 70 per cent of people living on less than $2 a day.<br /></p>