NEW DELHI– The Indian pharmaceuticals industry, growing currently at around 14 percent per year, can double its worth in the next four years to touch $55 billion (or Rs.4 lakh crore), union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers Ananth Kumar said on Wednesday.
“Pharmaceutical sector in the country is a sunrise industry. From around Rs.2 lakh crore currently, we are targetting this sector to touch Rs.4 lakh crore mark, or around $55 billion, by 2020,” the minister said here while releasing the report of the task force on “Development of Manufacturing Capabilities in each Medical Vertical in Pharmaceutical Production”.
“The sector needs to increase its growth rate by 1-2 percent every year. That’s why we have taken various policy initiatives and will keep doing that,” the minister said.
Noting that India can be a world leader in pharma, Ananth Kumar said the government is working to set up pharma parks, bulk drugs parks and medical devices parks, while the first medical devices park in the country was coming up soon.
“In the next 3 years, the country will have 6 pharma and 2 medical devices parks. There will be Rs.30,000 crore, or around $6 billion, investment on this count,” Ananth Kumar said.
He pointed out that pharma industry development was almost entirely private sector driven, with only 4-5 public sector undertakings in the sector.
“We have been telling the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to come out with a separate ministry of pharmaceuticals. It needs a full-fledged ministry,” he said.
