Mansukh Mandaviya urges pharma industry to make India a manufacturing hub

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday urged the pharma industry to make India a manufacturing base as the country is a safe destination for investments.

Addressing the Investor Summit on 'Opportunities & Partnerships in Pharma & Medical Devices', the minister spoke about the government’s pro-industry reforms and efforts to make India the best investment destination in the world.

"I would like to tell investors what PM Modi has already said. Please come and manufacture in India, set up industry here. The country provides a safe investment environment as you would find in your own countries," Mandaviya said in an online event.

He noted that the government has been taking constant steps to enhance investments in the country and the global pharma industry should take benefit from it.

There were no biases against people coming to invest from outside and everyone was treated equally, Mandaviya said, outlining the reasons for growth of the industry in the country.

He said that the government is looking to make the country a pharma hub and noted that the government is in the process of setting up three bulk drug parks in the country.

Around Rs 30,000 crore has been lined up as part of the two Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes in the pharma sector, Mandaviya said.

Mandaviya noted that the pharma sector was like a religion in the country and therefore it was the leading supplier of generic medicines in the world.

"We see to it that the world gets affordable medicines," he stated. The minister further said that the domestic pharma industry has witnessed growth in COVID times and it has been due to the pro-industry policies formed by the government. The Investor Summit was organised by the Department of Pharmaceuticals in partnership with Invest India.