The Indian medical devices industry has the power to emerge as the global leader in manufacturing and innovation in next the 25 years. It has the potential to grow at 28% per annum to reach US$ 50 billion, according to the Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizer, Mansukh Mandaviya.
The Minister stated this during the launching of a website for the India MedTech Expo 2022 (IMTE-22). The three-day event, which is being spearheaded by the government in association with the Indian medical devices industry, will be held on 9 December in Delhi.
Mandaviya said that the current Indian government plans to redesign aspirations in the pharmaceutical and medical device sector and build an ecosystem for innovation in medical devices and drugs. This would enhance industry-academia linkages. He claimed that the sector’s contribution has increased since the country supported the domestic and global battle against the COVID-19 pandemic by producing medical devices and diagnostic kits, such as ventilators, Rapid Antigen Test kits, RT-PCR kits, and IR thermometers.
India has skilled manpower, promotes ease of business through industry-friendly rules, and offers a huge market. The Minister emphasised that India has the potential to be one of the top 20 global medical device markets. He said he was confident that the industry could achieve a 10-12% share in the expanding global market over the next 25 years.
Medical devices constitute a multi-disciplinary sector with five main categories: electronic equipment, implants, consumables and disposables, surgical instruments, and in-vitro diagnostic reagents. Several segments in the medical device industry are highly capital-intensive with a long gestation period. They require the continuous induction of new technologies and training of healthcare professionals to adapt to new technologies and bring rapid innovation.
Medical devices undergo safety, quality, and efficacy tests through processes defined by the regulator before they are put on the market for sale. The current market size of the medical devices sector in India is about US $11 billion and its share in the global medical device market is estimated to be is 1.5%. The sector in India is witnessing rapid growth, Mandaviya noted, with a CAGR of 10-12% over the last decade.
IMTE-22 is the first edition of the event and is being coordinated by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). It is planned around the theme ‘The Future of Device, Diagnostics And Digital’. The event will create opportunities to network and explore collaborations both for the sector’s growth in India and its potential contribution globally. It will bring together PLI participants, start-ups, innovative entrepreneurs, R&D facilities, incubators, public and private hospitals, research institutions, and investors, state governments.
These stakeholders will deliberate on key sectoral issues, collaborate, and create opportunities to not only make India self-reliant but also transform it into a global med-tech hub by 2047. IMTE-22 will offer a unique platform to meet and interact with over start-ups, 150 medical device companies, and 50 research institutions.
Furthermore, IMTE-22 will feature special government and state focus pavilions, R&D pavilions, and parallel thematic conference sessions, and will showcase medical tech developed by innovators, companies, and R&D institutions.
