The four-day long 6th edition of International Conference on Pharmaceutical & Medical Device sector i.e. India Pharma 2021 & India Medical Device 2021 was held on Feb 25-26, 2021 and March 1-2, 2021 respectively. It was inaugurated by Union Minister Devaragunda Venkappa Sadananda Gowda, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers (MoC&F). The special focus of this edition was Global Investors Meet by Invest India.
- Minister of Railways, Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution Piyush Vedprakash Goyal also participated in the conference.
Organizers:
Both conferences were organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in partnership with Department of Pharmaceuticals, MoC&F, Invest India and Government of India (GoI).
Themes:
i.The theme for India Medical Device 2021 was ‘India MedTech Future: Innovate & Make in India through Global’.
ii.The theme for India Pharma 2021 was ‘Indian Pharma Industry: Future is Now’.
Expected Target:
i.The total market size of the Indian Pharma Industry is expected to reach the US $ 130 Billion by 2030.
ii.The medical devices industry in India has the potential to grow at 28% p.a. to reach $50 billion by 2025.
Indian Govt efforts in Pharma Sector during COVID-19 highlighted during the Conference:
On the lines of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, or ‘India for the world’, GoI made the following interventions & incentives in pharma sector:
i.India supplied drugs and medical devices during the COVID-19 pandemic such as ventilators, RT-PCR (Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) kits, PPE (Personal protective equipment) Kits, and masks at a global level.
ii.Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) launched the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for bulk drugs, with a financial outlay of Rs 6,940 crores across 53 APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) over 6 years.
iii.For Medical Devices, another PLI scheme was announced with an outlay of Rs 3,420.
iv.Government of India, strive to increase the ease of doing business in India for which several measures have already been announced and continue to support domestic manufacturing through measures such as the Rs 400 cr impetus given for the creation of 4 world-class medical device parks, or the Rs 3000 Cr allocated for the creation of 3 major bulk drug parks.
Key Figures of Indian Pharma:
i.Indian pharmaceutical sector accounts for about 2.4% of the global pharmaceutical industry in value terms and 10% in volume terms
ii.As per UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) report, India’s showed a positive FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) growth even with a decline in FDI of 42% globally.
EY-FICCI report titled ‘Indian Pharmaceutical Industry 2021: future is now’
The EY (Ernst & Young) – FICCI report titled ‘Indian Pharmaceutical Industry 2021: future is now’ was also launched during the event. In accordance with the report, the growth of Indian pharmaceutical and healthcare industry will be achieved through innovation led research and development, healthcare delivery (R&D), manufacturing and supply chain, and market access.
The objective of India Medical Device 2021 is:
- Endeavored to address industry issues and to create a platform to recommend solutions
- Facilitate sharing of knowledge and best practices
- To promote India as a Manufacturing hub in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Sector.
- To promote India as a premier global healthcare destination and attract investments.
- Provide a platform to network and collaborate.
- To identify new priority areas and deliberate upon them
6th India Pharma and Medical Device Award 2021
Union Minister DV Sadananda Gowda along with Minister of State (MoS) for Chemicals and FertilizersMansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya also presented 6th India Pharma and medical device award in following categories during the conference:
| Category | Name of Awardee |
|---|---|
| India Pharma Leader Award | Laurus Labs Limited |
| India Pharma Bulk Drug Company of the Year Award | Metrochem API Private Limited |
| India Pharma Innovation of the year Award | Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited |
| India Pharma Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Programme of the Year Award | Lupin Limited |
| India Medical Devices Company of the Year Award | WrigNanosystems Private Limited |
| Special Award in recognition of exceptional leadership & contribution in handling the supply of essential medicine & medical products during the period of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 | Dr. P.D. Vaghela, Former Secretary, DoP |
It should be noted that the International Conference on Pharmaceutical & Medical Device sector is held annually.
Note -India has launched the world’s largest Covid19 vaccination program and is at the center of the global effort to provide vaccines to other countries.
Recent Related News:
i.On January 22, 2021, the Central Government gave its consent for the first set of five pharma projects with the total committed Investment of Rs 3,761.17 crore. It was approved under the PLI scheme for promoting domestic manufacture of bulk drugs and APIs.
ii.Ahmedabad, Gujarat-based Intas Pharmaceuticals invested USD 75.22 million in a wholly-owned subsidiary in the United Kingdom (UK).
About Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers (MoC&F):
Devaragunda Venkappa Sadananda Gowda Constituency– Bangalore North, Karnataka)
Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya Constituency– Gujarat (Rajya Sabha)
