India pharmaceutical industry poised to double in size by 2030: Report

India’s pharmaceutical market is expected to grow to $120-130 billion by 2030 from an estimated $55 billion in 2025, and pharmaceutical exports have crossed $30 billion in FY25, a report said on Thursday.

The report from ASSOCHAM said India supplies around 20 per cent of the world’s generic medicines by volume and contributes over half of UNICEF's vaccine procurement requirements, underlining the country's role in global healthcare supply chains.

The next phase of growth will be driven by innovation, advanced therapies, artificial intelligence‑led drug discovery, biosimilars and regulatory excellence, according to ASSOCHAM Secretary General Saurabh Sanyal.

Sanyal said that India has built a strong reputation as a global supplier of affordable medicines and vaccines, due to its strong manufacturing capabilities, scientific talent and policy ecosystem.

He also emphasised the need for higher investment in research and development, stronger industry-academia collaboration, future-ready talent and globally aligned regulatory standards.

The industry chamber expects future growth to be driven by a global patent cliff on biologics, accelerating demand for affordable advanced therapies, advances in artificial intelligence-driven drug discovery, and geopolitical realignment of pharmaceutical supply chains.

The report highlighted that biologics generating over $40 billion in annual revenues are expected to lose exclusivity between 2025 and 2029, creating significant opportunities for biosimilar manufacturers. The global biosimilars market, valued at $39.6 billion in 2025, is projected to reach $151.6 billion by 2033.

India's bioeconomy has exceeded $150 billion and is projected to reach $300 billion by 2030, with biologics and biopharma expected to be key growth drivers.

Government initiatives such as Biopharma SHAKTI, Bio-RIDE and the BioE3 Policy are helping create an integrated ecosystem linking research, manufacturing and commercialisation, the report noted.

The report outlined five strategic priorities for India Pharma 2030 — global regulatory alignment and quality leadership; translational science and innovation financing; biologics and cell and gene therapy manufacturing leadership; pharma talent and research capability development; and domestic access, innovation adoption and Global South leadership.

India’s pharmaceutical exports will expand to $75-80 billion by 2030 if these priority areas are focused, the industry body noted.

(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by Education Post)