Guides
Practical, India-specific guides for pharmacy owners, distributors and hospital purchase managers on checking the businesses you buy from and sell to: drug licences, licence forms, GST registration and what to do when a licence is no longer in force.
Last reviewed: 1 October 2026
How to verify a drug licence in India
Why you must buy only from licensed parties, who issues drug licences, the checks to make on a supplier's licence and the warning signs to watch for.
Read the guideDrug licence forms 20, 21, 20B and 21B explained
Retail and wholesale sale licences under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, the restricted and Schedule X forms, and which ones your supplier needs.
Read the guideHow to verify the GSTIN of a pharma supplier
How a GSTIN is built, what active, suspended and cancelled mean, and why the GST record and the drug licence must point to the same business.
Read the guideExpired, suspended or cancelled drug licence: what it means
What each status means for a supplier you buy from, the steps to take when a licence shows cancelled, and how retention keeps your own licence in force.
Read the guide
Check it with Pharma Mithra
Verify a supplier's drug licence, GSTIN and FSSAI licence against official records before you buy.