Recently, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry organised conference on the classification of health products “Health Horizons: Defining the Future of Health Products” at PHD House, New Delhi. The event brought together industry leaders and policymakers to discuss the future of health products in India. Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, DCGI, CDSCO, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, attended the event as the Chief Guest.
India currently imports 80 per cent of its medical devices, with only 20 per cent domestically manufactured. The government has introduced numerous incentives, schemes, and policy interventions to shift this balance. Dr Raghuvanshi noted the licensing of over 3,200 manufacturing units and 10,000 import licences within one and a half years, showcasing significant progress.
He stressed the need to reverse the import-manufacture ratio and achieve a net positive trade in medical devices. “For in vitro devices, we currently have about 280 manufacturing licences and around 900 import licences. Despite manufacturing many in vitro devices domestically, almost 100 per cent of the reagents used are imported. This area holds significant business potential and opportunities”, he stated.
Dr Raghuvanshi also underlined the benefits of regulation, including quality monitoring and international acceptance, which collectively boost industry growth. According to him, “Regulating an industry provides many advantages, the foremost being quality monitoring and standardisation, which is critical in healthcare as it deals with people’s lives. A regulated industry builds international confidence in the products manufactured, boosting growth. Projections indicate that by 2030, the industry could grow to about $50 billion, which is five times its current size”.
Drawing from his experience in the pharmaceutical sector, Dr. Raghuvanshi warned against compromising quality for profitability. He highlighted unethical practices and emphasised the need for industry-wide commitment to high ethical and quality standards, given the healthcare sector’s critical impact on human lives.
The session, chaired by Dr Kamal Kishore, Professor & Head (Retd.), Department of Pharmacology at AIIMS, New Delhi, featured a diverse panel of experts. Dr Azadar Khan, Senior Vice President of India Regulatory Affairs & Corporate Relations at Sun Pharma, spoke on drugs and medicines. Neeraj Gupta, Founder and CEO of Genes2Me addressed diagnostics, while Dr Ravinder Singh, Senior Scientist at ICMR, discussed assistive products. Praveen Srivastava, Senior Director at CDAC, MeitY, explored digital and health technology. K. Vijay Kumar Gupta, CEO of Kwality Photonics, RAYPURE-LEDchip Indus, presented on human-friendly disinfection through lighting. Lastly, Dr Salaj Rana, Scientist at ICMR, highlighted convergence augmentative technology (CAT).