Pharma industry will have growth opportunity of $10 billion in form of generics: Udaya Bhaskar
Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) Director General Udaya Bhaskar has said that as many as 15 blockbuster drugs whose revenues worth $112 billion will be off-patented during 2023 to 2029 and the Indian pharma industry will have a growth opportunity of $10 billion in the form of generics (including complex).
Bhaskar said with the advent of quality concerns raised by global regulatory agencies, Pharmexcil's priority has been shifted to quality management and imbibing quality culture in the industry by way of organising capacity building programmes in states to uphold the image of Indian pharma on global platform. He further said the Indian pharma sector is fraught with challenges such as geopolitical tensions, supply chain issues, pricing pressures and increased scrutiny by global regulatory agencies, among others and that the government needs to be proactive to overcome these hurdles. According to the pharma exports body, India has 748 US Food and Drug Administration approved manufacturing facilities.
He noted that Indian pharma exports recorded 8.85 per cent growth during April and May this year at $4.73 billion against $4.35 billion during the same period last fiscal. Besides, India's imports during April and May have increased marginally by 1.98 per cent, from $8.10 billion in FY23 to $8.26 billion in FY24. Indian pharma export grew from $3.9 billion in FY05 to $27.85 billion in FY24 and is expected to touch around $31 billion this fiscal. According to him, Latin America and Africa are the focussed geographies for Indian pharma exports.