Covid-19 Unlocking India's Capacity In Life Sciences

Today, for India, the COVID-19 pandemic is a strong catalyst to re-inforce the Make in India initiative to facilitate investment, promote innovation, enhance skill development, protect intellectual property and build best in class manufacturing infrastructure in the life sciences sector. For fostering an innovation ecosystem or hub within India, interventions across three dimensions will be required which includes encouraging industry-academia collaboration; increasing R&D investment; and reinvigorating government support.

- Dr.Manbeena Chawla

Over the last few decades, the Indian pharma industry has grown its expertise significantly in manufacturing and supplying quality generic drugs to address the growing need for affordable healthcare around the world. While India is lauded for its drive and efforts in becoming the pharmacy of the world, the country is still at a nascent stage in terms of its activities in commercially oriented R&D and innovation.

Moreover, with rising burden of diseases especially with the current pandemic situation, the demand for drugs and vaccine have increased significantly, calling out the need for innovation in the country. As a result, the life sciences sector has started responding to these needs by either strategizing to ramp up manufacturing of their existing portfolio, build new products such as testing kits or vaccines or re-orient their product platforms to build COVID-19 related products.

This indeed demonstrates that a crisis can bring tremendous opportunities to recognise the country’s value and potential. Today, for India, the COVID-19 pandemic is a strong catalyst to reinforce the Make in India initiative to facilitate investment, promote innovation, enhance skill development, protect intellectual property and build best in class manufacturing infrastructure in the life sciences sector.