Government-owned Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals has surpassed the total profit it had recorded last year in the first six months of 2018-19. The city-based firm has posted a profit of Rs 11 crore during April-September and a revenue of Rs 60 crore during the period.

The total revenue and profit in the year-ago period was Rs 44 crore and Rs 1.4 crore, respectively.

The company has earned a total revenue of Rs 95 crore in 2017-18 and is planning to reach Rs 120 crore this year. The profit target is pegged at Rs 20 crore.

According to managing director P.M. Chandraiah, a combination of factors such as increased revenues from the injectible section has boosted the company’s topline. New retail stores have helped expand presence. Moreover, the company has also cut down on interest and operational expenses that have helped to improve the bottomline.

The company has three business divisions — industrial chemicals, pharmaceuticals and home products. While the pharmaceutical division constituted more than 64 per cent of the turnover in 2017-18, the home products business is growing at a rapid rate, constituting 31 per cent of the turnover in 2017-18. The industrial chemicals division constituted the remaining 5 per cent.

“The company had posted a loss of Rs 36.55 crore in 2013-14. From there it has not only come back to profit but the bottomline is also steadily increasing. This year we are hopeful of achieving a profit of Rs 20 crore,” said Chandraiah.

“We have repaid the bank loan and are gradually repaying the government credit too. There has been significant savings on interest payment and the aim is to become a debt free company by the end of the year. We have also taken cost savings measures that have an impact on the profitability,” he said.

“We have opened three stores this year and there is a plan to open another store in Mumbai by the end of the year,” he said.