Opportunities and Roadblocks in Indian Pharma Industry

The Indian Pharmaceutical Industry has been experiencing a profound development in the last couple of decades. With the liberalisation of the market, the pharma manufacturing companies in India grew quite notably. Some companies even met global standards and became a well-known name in the international market. Today, Indian pharma companies account for around 35% of the Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) approvals, granted by the Food and Drug Administration of the US. Another major development that took place over the last few years is that foreign companies are entering the Indian market, thus solidifying the industry as well as the economy.

Multinational pharma companies are looking at India as a rewarding market, as the Indian pharmaceutical sector offers a host of opportunities for foreign companies to establish their units and market their products in India. Due to the rising demand for quality healthcare in India, the domestic market in India is quite promising. Moreover, the availability of human resources, adept at performing scientific and medicinal research, makes India a hub for manufacturing drugs. India being a developing country, the cost of production also reduces by 40 to 50%, compared the US or European countries. In addition to all these, the Indian government is continuously trying to accelerate the pharma sector in India by taking several major steps like reducing the times for approval and licences.

Despite the opportunities, the Indian pharmaceutical industry has also faced several roadblocks on the way. The challenges for the Indian pharmaceutical industry are unique and complex in nature. According to a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), up to 30% of medicinal drugs sold in developing countries are fake, which can seriously affect a patient’s health. To prevent this, the government of India, in association with WHO, is coming up with various measures like packaging with 2D barcode, investing more on drug manufacturer inspectors, etc. Apart from this, the patent issues are coming up as hindrances in the industry. The government should take preventive measures to take care of the problem. If these issues can be resolved, we hope to see a top medicine company in India among the world pharmaceutical leaders. And, as far as the growth is concerned, if it continues, we’ll be able to see a golden era in the Indian pharmaceutical sector.