Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya launches National Medical Device Policy 2023

The Cabinet approved the National Medical Device Policy 2023 on April 26, but the policy and its official strategy document were officially released and unveiled by Mandaviya today.

Bargaining with the quality of medical products will damage India's growth, competitiveness and reputation, Mandaviya said. He emphasised that he will not tolerate that.

This statement comes days after India made the quality check of cough syrups exported from India mandatory. India-made syrups, in the past year, have been linked to dozens of deaths in Gambia and Uzbekistan.

"I hope the industry will cooperate in the actions taken by the government to maintain the quality," Mandaviya said.

As India holds the title of "Pharmacy of the World," our responsibilities have now doubled, Mandaviya added. He emphasised on the importance of innovation in order for the nation to survive the pharma race.

His thoughts were echoed by Kallam Satish Reddy, the Chairman of Dr Reddy's Laboratories, who said that looking forward, the goals India sets for its pharmaceutical and medical devices industry are critical. While there is opportunity and support from the government and the industry, innovation is required at all levels.

If we are able to discover drugs and market them ourselves, we can push India from being a $42 billion industry to its 2024 goal of being a $65 million industry, Reddy said.

Co-hosted by the Department of Pharmaceuticals and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the annual International Conference on India Pharma and India Medical Devices marked its 8th edition today. While day 1 of the two-day event focuses on medical devices, the May 27 sessions will centre around pharmaceuticals.

The conference is aimed at establishing India as a cost-effective, high-quality manufacturing and innovation centre for the pharmaceuticals and medical device industry.

The event was attended by eminent dignitaries, senior officials of the Government of India and representatives of the industry and academia.

These include Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Chemicals and Fertilizers of India Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers and New and Renewable Energy Bhagawanth Khuba, Department of Pharmaceuticals Secretary S Aparna, Joint Secretaries N. Yuvaraj (pharmaceuticals) and Srikar K Reddy (Commerce). Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India Ajay Kumar Sood, FICCI Secretary General Shailesh Pathak, Transasia Bio-Medicals Ltd. CEO Aravind Viswanathan and Dr Reddy's Laboratories Chairman Kallam Satish Reddy also attended day 1 of the conference.

The inaugural event was followed by a CEO roundtable which Mandaviya will attend. The health minister just yesterday conducted bilateral meetings with member countries at the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.