Concept2 stories
Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013
In one line: The DPCO, 2013 is the government order that fixes ceiling prices for essential medicines and limits price increases for other medicines.
How it works
- It is issued under Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 and replaced the DPCO of 1995.
- Scheduled formulations are the medicines in the National List of Essential Medicines. Their ceiling price is the simple average PTR of brands with at least 1% market share, plus a 16% retailer margin.
- Non-scheduled formulations have no ceiling, but their MRP may rise by at most 10% in a year.
- Paragraph 19 lets the government fix the ceiling or retail price of any drug in extraordinary circumstances, in the public interest.
Why it is in the news
The Supreme Court asked in September 2026 why the 16% margin cannot apply to all medicines.
Where to go next
- National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority
- Trade Margin Rationalisation
Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013 in the news
- Centre to cap trade margins on 110 non-scheduled cancer drugs at 30% 9 October 2026
The law that sets drug prices and splits scheduled from non-scheduled drugs.
- Editorial: Supreme Court flags ten-fold drug markups, exposing gaps in price control 1 October 2026
How India caps medicine prices.
Previous-year questions on this
- 2024 · GS2 · 15 marks In a crucial domain like the public healthcare system the Indian State should play a vital role to contain the adverse impact of marketisation of the system. Suggest some measures through which the…
- 2015 · GS2 · 12.5 marks Public health system has limitation in providing universal health coverage. Do you think that private sector can help in bridging the gap? What other viable alternatives do you suggest?