HOW IS PARMJIT ARORA’S HEALTH BIOTECH HELPING INDIA TO GO FROM VOLUME PRODUCER TO VALUE SUPPLIER

The pharmaceutical exports of India have witnessed a remarkable growth of 103% in the last decade. India has made a global mark with manufacturing over 50% of the world’s vaccines and 20% of generic medicines. This phenomenal success can be attributed to world-class manufacturing, strong infrastructure, cost competitiveness, human capital, and innovation. Sudarshan Jain, the Secretary General of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (a group of 24 leading research-based Indian pharmaceutical companies), aspires for the Indian pharma industry to be valued at $450 billion by 2047.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought to fore the dynamism of Indian pharma sector in the eyes of public. Companies like Aurobindo Pharma, led by Dr.M.Sivakumaran, Cipla, headed by Umang Vohra and Parmjit Arora’s Health Biotech were among some of the companies that ensured the successful delivery of vaccines. India supplied Vaccines to over 90+ countries during the pandemic and was lauded world over.

Parmjit Arora Health Biotech’s director believes in providing quality pharmaceuticals that can reach society far and wide, both in the Indian and international markets. “The endeavor is to be a focused and one of the largest finished pharmaceutical injectable tech and R&D based manufacturers in Asia”. Health Biotech provides world-class expertise in lyophilization product and process development. The company prides itself on consistently delivering parenteral products as economically and rapidly as possible. Health Biotech’s Remdesivir was a game changer for people impacted by the pandemic worldwide.

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, addressed the roundtable on ‘Opportunities in R&D and Innovation in Life Sciences’ at the World Economic Forum in Davos and remarked that “India is taking concerted and coordinated efforts on R&D and Innovation in the Pharma-MedTech Sector to develop cutting-edge products and technologies indigenously and promoting an enabling ecosystem for innovation to become a leader in drug discovery and innovative medical devices”.

Another segment that the government of India is actively investing in is the API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient). API contributes to around 35% of the market and India manufactures 500+ different APIs, making it a crucial component of the pharma industry. India is the 3rd largest producer accounting for an 8% share of the Global API Industry.  In 2020, the government approved 6,940 crore rupees for the PLI scheme for the promotion of domestic manufacturing of Key Starting Materials and APIs.

 With less than a week to go for the Budget, the pharma sector has high hopes with regards to the policy regime, simplified GST norms, and incentives to further push the output in R&D and innovation. In addition, the industry stands to benefit a lot from increased government schemes and initiatives for manufacturing and establishing a future oriented ‘value chain’ that supplies skilled professionals to the pharma sector in the coming years which would go a long way in giving the much-needed spurt to the pharma sector.

Over past years, the pharma industry has witnessed diverse collaborations and adopted innovative approaches to deliver the best quality medicines during various viral outbreaks world over and beyond. The sector has shown unwavering commitment to serve humanity, good results of which have enhanced the sector’s footprint across the globe. A bright future stands ahead for India’s pharmaceutical businesses in 2023.