The Schemes supporting development and manufacturing of medical devices in the country have helped growth of medical devices exports from the country to almost 88% during six financial years upto 2024-25.
The Centre has introduced various schemes including the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for Promoting Domestic Manufacturing of Medical Devices, Scheme for Promotion of Medical Devices Parks, and Scheme for Strengthening Medical Device Industry over the past years to support the domestic production during the period, for the growth of the sector. The export has grown from $ 2,138 million in FY2018-19 to $ 4,014 million in FY2024-25, according to the Union ministry of chemicals and fertilisers.
The PLI scheme for Promoting Domestic Manufacturing of Medical Devices, which has a total budgetary outlay of Rs 3,420 crore and a five-year performance-linked incentive period from FY2022-23 to FY2026-27, has reported a cumulative eligible sales Rs 10,413.40 crore till March 2025, including export sales worth Rs. 5,002 crore.
Under the scheme, selected companies are eligible for financial incentive for incremental sales of domestically manufactured medical devices in the radiotherapy, imaging device, anaesthesia, cardio-respiratory and critical care and implant device segments, for a period of five years.
So far, 21 greenfield projects have been commissioned, and production has started for 54 products, which include high-end medical devices on which the country has been highly import-dependent, such as linear accelerators, machines for MRI and CT scans and mammograms, C-arm X-ray machines and ultrasound machines, said Anupriya Patel, minister of state in the ministry of chemicals and fertilisers recently in the Parliament.
Under the Scheme for Promotion of Medical Devices Parks, three parks have been approved and are at an advanced stage of development in Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh), Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh) and Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu) districts. The total project cost of these is over Rs. 871.11 crore, with Central assistance to the tune of Rs. 100 crore each for creation of common infrastructure facilities, which is expected to enhance industry’s competitiveness and reduce production costs through optimisation of resources and economies of scale.
The Scheme for Strengthening Medical Device Industry has been launched on November 8, 2024 with a financial outlay of Rs. 500 crore. It aims to strengthen the medical device industry by providing support in critical areas, including manufacturing of key components and accessories, skill development, support for clinical studies, development of common infrastructure, and industry promotion.
Source : Pharmabiz
