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Centre to amend Rules to allow import of drugs, devices & cosmetics through 8 more ICDs, an airport & an SEZ
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Gireesh Babu, New Delhi
September 22 , 2026
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In a step towards strengthening the pharmaceutical supply chain and facilitating ease of trade, the Central Government has received expert recommendation to amend the Drugs Rules, 1945 to allow transportation of drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics through eight Inland Container Depots (ICDs), one airport and one Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
The Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB), in its 94th meeting held on August 27, has considered a proposal to amend Rule 43A of the Drugs Rules, 1945 to include various ICDs, ports and SEZs for the import of drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics in the country.
Following deliberation, the meeting recommended amending the Rule to include certain points for fast clearance of the consignments.
The list includes Noida International Airport in Uttar Pradesh, ICDs in Sanath Nagar and Thimmapur in Hyderabad, Gandhidham/Mundra in Gujarat, Sonipat, Garhi Harsaru, and Piyala in Haryana, Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, and Whitefield in Bengaluru and an SEZ in Bommasandra, Karnataka.
India's leading biopharmaceutical major Biocon Ltd has its SEZ in Bommasandra, known as Biocon Park, in a total area of around 90 acres.
Noida International Airport, connecting greater Delhi and Western Uttar Pradesh to the rest of the world through air transport, a public private partnership initiative, is managed by Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd (YIAPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG.
ICDs in Sanath Nagar and Whitefield are managed by Container Corporation of India (Concor), ICD in Thimmapur by DP World, ICD Sonipat, also known as Delhi International Cargo Terminal managed by JM Baxi Group, ICDs in Garhi Harsaru and Piyala in Haryana are managed by Gateway Distriparks Ltd.
ICD Dardi, one of the largest multi-modal logistics mark in Greater Noida in an area of around 260 acres, is managed by Concor.
It may be noted that the Union ministry of health and family welfare has in July amended Rule 43A of the Drugs Rules, 1945 to allow import of drugs through the recently inaugurated Navi Mumbai Airport in Maharashtra, following consultation with the DTAB.
According to Rule 43 A of the Drugs Rules, drug imports are restricted through select roads, railway routes, sea ports, and airports in the country, notified by the Centre. Imports by air are allowed through Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Goa, Bengaluru, Visakhapatnam. Airports of Cochin and Thiruvananthapuram, and Navi Mumbai have been added to this list through recent amendments.
According to Drugs Rules, 1945, updated and published by the central drugs regulator in the middle of 2024, drugs, medical devices and cosmetics can be imported through rail across the frontier with Pakistan is allowed only through Ferozepur Cantonment and Amritsar railway stations; from Bangladesh through Ranaghat, Bongaon and Mohiassan railway stations; from Bangladesh by road through Petrapole Road in West Bengal, Sutarkandi in Assam, old Raghna Bazar and Agartala in Tripura; and from Nepal through road and railway lines connecting Raxaul in India and Birganj in Nepal.
Drugs imported by sea into India are only allowed through the ports of Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Cochin, Nhava Sheva, Kandla; Inland Container Depots (ICDs) at Tuglakabad and Patparganj in Delhi; Tuticorin and Kamarajar Port in Tamil Nadu; Marmugao port in Goa; Visakhapatnam, Krishnapatnam and Gangavaram ports in Andhra Pradesh; Hazira port and ICD in Khodiyar, Gandhinagar and Mundra port in Gujarat; and ICD at Dhannad and Tihi, and Indore in Madhya Pradesh.
Drugs, consignments of which are in transit through India to foreign countries and which shall not be sold or distributed in India shall be exempted from the requirements of imports under the Chapter III of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and related rules governing import of drugs and cosmetics to the country, says Rule 43 B of the Drugs Rules. This is provided that if the government of the countries to which the drugs are consigned regulate their import by the grant of import licences, the importer shall at the time of import into India, produce such import licenses.
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