The government on Friday removed restrictions on exports of formulations made from Paracetamol amid the outbreak of COVID-19.

However, restrictions on exports of Paracetamol active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) will continue on, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

However, along with paracetamol, India has also relaxed the ban on hydroxychloroquine(HCQ) both used in COVID-19 therapies and placed them in the licensed category.

To export a product, which is under the restricted category, an exporter requires no-objection certificate or permission of a license from the DGFT.

The government on March 3 had put export restrictions on 26 pharma ingredients and medicines, including paracetamol.

However, on April 6, it removed the export restrictions on 24 APIs and formulations excluding Paracetamol.

The move to ease the export ban followed the recommendation of an expert panel, said officials with knowledge of the matter. The panel led by drug pricing regulator Shubhra Singh had been tasked with assessing the capability and the manufacturing capacity of domestic pharmaceutical companies.

However, Apart from the US, about 30 countries, including South Asian neighbors and key global partners in West Asia, had asked India to lift the ban on hydroxychloroquine exports too.
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.The companies producing the drug have been asked to submit production details on a weekly basis. The decision on how much can be exported will be taken by the expert panel led by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority chairperson Shubhra Singh.
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.Meanwhile, the total number of coronavirus cases in India has gone up to 13,387 while the death toll has risen to 437, according to the latest figures from the Health Ministry. In the past 24 hours, 1,007 fresh COVID-19 infections and 23 deaths were reported. On the other hand, 1748 patients have been cured of the virus or discharged. Maharashtra is the worst affected state with 3,205 cases and 194 deaths.
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.Across the globe, the US remains the worst affected country with 6.7 lakh cases and over 33,000 deaths. Spain (184,948 cases and 19,315 fatalities) Italy (168,941 cases and 22,170 fatalities), France (147,091 cases and 17,941 fatalities) and UK (104,146 cases and 13,759 fatalities) are among the other badly hit countries.