TECH PILL

Health care startups and other companies are making the most of the pandemic-induced opportunities in the sector by developing innovative products and technologies

- NAINI THAKER & MANSVINI KAUSHIK

The coronavirus outbreak exposed the vast gaps, severe inadequacies and existing vulnerabilities in the Indian health care system. As of August, there was only one government bed and one doctor for every 1,844 and 11,082 patients, respectively. The country is ranked 145 among 195 countries in terms of quality and accessibility of health care, according to a Lancet study.

The challenges, however, also proved to be a great opportunity for health care startups and others who pivoted into the sector. From launching a range of sanitisers and masks, and health care assistive applications to manufacturing ventilators, personal protective equipment kits and experimenting with various Covid-19 tests, the sector saw hectic activity since March. Issues such as labour scarcity and supply chains breaking down persisted, but did not prove to be a deterrence for companies willing to establish themselves. According to DataLabs by Inc42+’s ₹India’s Healthtech Landscape In A PostCovid-19 World Report 2020’, the size of the health tech market in India is likely to touch $21 billion by 2025 from $5.2 billion in 2019.

Forbes India takes a look at a few such startups that are taking the fight against Covid-19 head-on.

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