National R&D policy to bolster Indian pharma sector, say experts

The India Pavilion at EXPO2020 Dubai recently hosted a roundtable, ‘India – Pharmacy of the world’ as part of the ongoing Health and Wellness week, wherein several government and industry experts discussed the key focus areas, including regulatory reforms, pharma exports, ease of doing business, R&D financing mechanisms and clinical trial scenario in India.

In his virtual address, N Yuvraj, Joint Secretary (Policy, Medical Device, Pharma Bureau), Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP), Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, said, “The current valuation of the Indian pharma industry is $41 billion, which has the potential to grow up to $130 billion by 2030. There is a strong potential for further growth for the industry, but it should be in a holistic manner from across the value chain.”

“Under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat mission, we are increasing our domestic production by reducing our import dependence to make products not only for India, but also for the world. The DoP is working on a dedicated national R&D policy for the sector to ensure that India will soon position itself as an ideal destination for collaborations and alliances in the pharmaceutical industry,” he added.

Talking about the regulatory reforms in India virtually, Dr Rubina Bose, Deputy Drugs Controller (India), Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), said, “We have taken various measures to streamline the drug regulatory system in the country by ensuring transparency and accountability, and promoting innovations, scientific and ethical research. These measures are aligned with the National Health Policy, which aims to improve and strengthen the regulatory environment for easing drugs and devices manufacturing while promoting ‘Make in India.’”

Addressing the area of pharma exports and ease of doing business virtually, Uday Bhaskar, Director General, Pharmexcil, Ministry of Commerce, said, “India is doing extremely well in the pharma export. The Indian pharmaceutical industry is continuing the legacy of providing the medicines at a very affordable price not only to the underdeveloped countries and the developing countries, but also to the well-developed and highly regulated markets.

“Going ahead, we need to focus on biologics and complex generics. Hence, we have to work towards spending and supporting the industry, particularly in R&D and innovation,” he added.

The roundtable was also attended by Taher Karampurwala, Cluster Head – APAC and MENA, Cipla, along with other dignitaries, who joined the session virtually, including Dr Dulal Panda, Director, NIPER Mohali; Dr Manish Diwan, Head – Strategy Partnership and Entrepreneurship Development, BIRAC, Department of Biotechnology; Vikrant Shrotriya, Managing Director, Novo Nordisk India; Dr Murali Ramachandra, CEO, Aurigene Discovery Technologies and Suneela Thatte, Vice President and Head- R&D India, Merck KGaA.

The Health & Wellness week at India Pavilion will conclude on 4th February, 2022.