The Indian medical devices industry has the potential to grow at an annual rate of 28 per cent to reach $50 billion by 2030, Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers and Health & Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya said on Friday.

“Indian medical devices industry has the power to emerge as the global leader in manufacturing and innovation in next 25 years. It has the potential to grow at 28 per cent p.a. to reach $50 billion by 2030,” Mandaviya said while addressing an event to launch the website of India MedTech Expo 2022 (IMTE-22).

MedTech Expo 2022 is the first ever expo being spearheaded by the Government in association with Indian medical devices industry. The three-day IMTE-22 will start on 9th December 2022 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

Highlighting the importance of pharmaceutical and medical device sector Mandaviya said, “As India prepares for its Amrit Kaal, it is a moment in time to redesign our aspiration in pharmaceutical and medical device sector and build an ecosystem for innovation in medical devices and drugs, thereby enhancing the industry-academia linkages to a greater extent”.

“The event will create visibility of the medical devices ecosystem to the world and build a brand identity for the Indian MedTech sector,” he said.

He further stated that “the Indian medical devices sector’s contribution has become even more prominent since India supported the domestic and global battle against COVID-19 pandemic through the production of medical devices & diagnostic kits, such as ventilators, Rapid Antigen Test kits, RT-PCR kits, IR thermometers, PPE kits & N-95 masks”.

The minister pointed out that “India has been recognised as ‘Pharmacy of the World’. It is time for us to take the lead in the medical devices sector. India has its strengths of skilled manpower, ease of business through its industry-friendly rules and also offers a huge market.

The Expo will provide a platform for the various global leaders in this sector to converge and explore India’s potential as a manufacturing hub, and also an emerging global market”.

He emphasised that India has the potential to be one of the top 20 global medical device markets in a short span of time and urged the Indian Medical Devices Industry to work with an aim to emerge as the global leader in the manufacturing and innovation of medical devices.

The minister expressed confidence in the ability of the Indian Medical Devices Industry to achieve 10-12 per cent share in the expanding global market over the next 25 years. He further noted that owing to the paramount importance of the medical devices sector, “the IMTE-22 is a timely effort that will allow us to deliberate upon the opportunities and key challenges in the areas of the sectors”.

The purpose of India MedTech Expo is to showcase the strength and potential of the Indian MedTech Industry, the innovation ecosystem of the country and a strong academia which is nurturing entrepreneurship relentlessly.

IMTE-22 is expected to have participation of more than 450 Indian MedTech companies including big companies, MSMEs and start-ups.

Medical devices constitute a multi-disciplinary sector with the following broad classification: (a) Electronic equipment (b) Implants; (c) Consumables and Disposables (d) Surgical instruments and (e) In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents. Several segments in the medical device industry are highly capital intensive with long gestation period, requiring 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 get placed in the market for sale. The current market size of the medical devices sector in India is estimated to be $11 billion and its share in the global medical device market is estimated to be 1.5 per cent. The sector in India is witnessing fast growth with a CAGR of 10-12 per cent over the last decade.

Addressing the event, S Aparna, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, elaborated on how the government has been working to ensure a stable long-term policy environment and reduce the compliance burden on the Industry.