New Delhi, Sep 23 (IANS): The government has withdrawn the regulator, National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority’s (NPPA) powers of fixing the prices of non-essential medicines.

The government order, issued late Monday, comes after NPPA's decision in July to set a price ceiling on more than 100 drugs that provoked protests from several pharma players' groups like the Indian Pharma Alliance (IPA).

"In compliance with the directions received from the government in the Department of Pharmaceuticals, the internal guidelines issued by the NPPA on May 29, 2014, under Paragraph 19 of DPCO, 2013, are hereby withdrawn with immediate effect," the NPPA said in a statement.

The withdrawing of the NPPA’s powers to fix prices of non-essential medicines will be on a prospective basis, and will not affect the price caps imposed in July on 108 drugs, an official source told IANS Tuesday.

The NPPA on July 10 invoked Para 19 of the Drug Prices Control Order (DPCO) to bring 108 anti-diabetic and cardiovascular medicines under price control.

Paragraph 19 of DPCO, 2013, authorises the drugs regulator in extraordinary circumstances and in public interest, to fix the ceiling price or retail price of any drug for such period as it deems fit.