Indian Biotech Sector

• Over 300 registered biotech

companies, out of which 100 are in 3% 1% Bio-pharma
modern sector 14%
• 12th most successful biotech in the Bio-services
world Bio-agri
• 3rd largest in Asia with 96 enterprises
• Employs more than 10,000 people and Bio-industry
generates roughly US$ 500 million in
revenue Bio-informatics
• India is becoming a leading destination
for clinical trials, contract research and
manufacturing activities which is
leading to the growth of bio services 18%
sector.
• The bio-pharmaceutical segment 64%
accounted for largest revenue share of
64 per cent in India biotech industry,
during FY16. Market break-up by revenues (FY 16)

 Human Resource: Talented manpower and knowledge base

 Academic resource: Good network of research laboratories
 Well developed base industries (eg. Pharmaceuticals, seeds) -280 registered biotech- and 180 bio
suppliers contributing to the total biotech market worth a hundred billion dollars
 The laboratories such as CSIR, ICMR, IARI, JNU and PGIMS with world class infrastructure are the
upcoming sectors involved in clinical research, and the medical and bioinformatics areas are key fields
in development of the biotech sector in India
 The biodiversity of Indian gene pools and unique plant, animal and microbial diversity offer
exciting opportunities for genomic research
 The country has all of the essential ingredients for success, including top-ranked universities, a
capable workforce, and an improving quality of life. India is known for high-quality, world-class
pharmaceutical companies that have solid track records in manufacturing of products and
processes related to chemical compounds, including enzymes, proteins and antibodies
 Several labs have commenced research in stem cells and have valuable stem cell lines

 The major areas of concern are the lack of
adequate skills and infrastructure in some
areas of R&D, imprecise documentation
systems, a low track record of
performance in the relevant fields,
ambiguities in the interpretation and
implementation of global regulatory and
intellectual protection standards
 Image of Indian industry – doubts about
ability of Indian products to meet
international standards of quality
 Issues on maintenance of confidentiality,
protection of data submitted for
regulatory clearances (data exclusivity
 Poor patent protection and litigation
 In India there is a missing link between the
research and commercialization, i.e., how
to sell the invention and new
developments in the national and
international market so as to compete with
the bio-competitors in the commercial
sectors
 Lack of venture capital
 Non-adherence to time schedules and
secrecy modalities
 Development costs of new drugs – biotech
industries have a high cost of investment
requirements
 Research takes time to produce a billable
output
 Market Size (US$ billion)
20 7 11
1.1 1.5 1.9 2.6 2.6 3 3.8 4.3 4.3 5
0

FY12

FY14
FY05
FY06
FY07
FY08
FY09
FY10
FY11

FY13

 Growing at a faster pace, in comparison with
the previous years, the Indian biotech industry
witnessed YoY growth of 57.14 per cent in
FY16; the total industry size stood at US$ 11
billion by FY16
 Fast-paced growth is likely to continue; the
industry is expected to increase in size to US$
11.6 billion by 2017, driven by a range of
factors such as growing demand, intensive R&D
activities and strong government initiative
 Large domestic market
 Large export potential
 Low cost of research in comparison with other
countries
 Vast bio-diversity of flora comprising various
medicinal plants for ayurvedic and
homeopathic drugs
 Supportive government policy on stem cell
research
FY15
FY16
 Government of India also extends a supportive
hand in the field of foreign collaborations to
assure a better output in science and
technology through institutes such as the
Department of Biotechnology, the Council of
Science and Technology, etc
 Conductive Government policy on GM crops
provide useful opportunities for Agri-biotech
companies
 Internal and external threats
 Clinical research organizations have short-term
goals and little understanding of the intricacies
of global regulatory requirements
 Price wars between research organiszations
 Enhanced level of politics in the system
 Exodus of brilliant brain to other countries
 Joint ventures: Joint venture with national and international firms could be a good source for
collaborative research, of financial commodities, as well as a better exchange mode of technology
and knowledge
 Contract research: Good way to earn good business for the institutes, in agreement with
biopharmaceutical companies
 Collaborative research with pharmaceutical companies possible which can bring down research
costs
 Clinical research: Clinical tests in India cost one tenth the cost in developed countries. Clinical
research organizations can seek research and trial projects in India from international companies
very easily
 Technology transfer: Patent protection is an effective tool for achieving technology transfer.

References

 [1] Abhishek Kumar, Amity Institute of Biotechnology,-Indian Biotech Bazaar: A swot analysis,
Biotechnol. J. 2007, 2, 543–545
 [2] Kumar, N. K., Quach, U., Thorsteinsdóttir, H., Somsekhar, H. et al., Indian biotechnology–
rapidly evolving and industry led. Nat. Biotechnol. 2004, 22 Suppl, DC31–36.
 [3] Anonymous – Indian biotechnology industry analysis, Indian Brand Equity Foundation
(IBEF) June 2017