Are Merger Regulations Effective?

Both the merger control provisions of the Competition Act, 2002, notified by the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) with relaxation to the thresholds and the draft merger regulations put out by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) are industry-friendly and allay some of the concerns of industry. Yet, worries remain. The first concern was the…

Competition Act, 2002: Overview

In the wake of economic liberalization and widespread economic reforms introduced in 1991, and in its attempt to move from a ‘command and control’ regime to a regime based on free market principles, India decided to replace its then existing competition law – the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act 1969, which was primarily designed…

How Mergers Affect Competition

India’s new competition regulator, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) is getting ready to commence regulation of “combinations” (acquisition, acquiring control, mergers and amalgamations between enterprises above the threshold limits mentioned in section 5 of the Competition Act, 2002) and has decided to publish the implementing draft regulations for merger control shortly. Chairman, CCI has acknowledged that…

Role of Economics in Competition Law

Competition law is essentially concerned with the study of markets, the objective being to ensure that there is competition between the suppliers in any market and that this competition benefits consumers. At the day-to-day level, applying competition law involves identifying markets and assessing whether competition is working well in those markets. It involves assessing how…

No Fair-Play in Pharma Industry

November 3, 2009 The recent anti-trust raids on Ranbaxy’s France unit by the European Commission (EC) has not come as a surprise, given that most pharmaceutical companies in India manufacture generic drugs. These drugs contain same active ingredients as the original formulations invented by the “originator” companies, mostly from Europe or United States, and in…