Dr. Jitendra Singh Highlights India’s Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Advances at Global MedTech Summit 2024

Discussing the evolving healthcare landscape, Dr. Singh pointed to the rising burden of metabolic disorders and the challenges posed by new diseases associated with increasing lifespans.

At the "Global MedTech Summit 2024," organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at Hotel Le Meridian, Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh emphasized India's growing role as a leading global destination for cost-effective healthcare and a key player in the pharmaceutical industry.

Dr. Singh outlined the significant strides made in healthcare under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration, focusing on the vision for a healthier India, which includes eliminating communicable diseases, preventing non-communicable diseases, and improving health indices. He highlighted the government's commitment to accessible healthcare, referencing the world’s largest vaccination drive during the COVID-19 pandemic as a testament to this commitment.

Discussing the evolving healthcare landscape, Dr. Singh pointed to the rising burden of metabolic disorders and the challenges posed by new diseases associated with increasing lifespans. He noted that these emerging health issues, such as Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and young heart attacks, not only pose significant health challenges but also risk depleting the nation's youthful energy and potential.

The Minister, who is also a professor of medicine and endocrinology, advocated for a "PPP + PPP" model, urging collaboration between the public and private sectors in India and their international counterparts. He cited the success of partnerships in the space and biotechnology sectors as examples of effective collaboration, highlighting the surge in private investment and startup growth in these fields.

Dr. Singh described India as one of the top six bio-manufacturers globally, known for its cost-effective and efficacy-based bio-manufacturing. He praised the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) for its role in linking industry and research, and noted the remarkable growth in bio-manufacturing from $10 billion in 2014 to $130 billion in 2024.

The Minister also emphasized the importance of medical devices as a "sunrise sector" and discussed the government's efforts to establish India as a manufacturing hub for these products. He revealed that a research group is working on creating indices, benchmarks, and action plans to support this initiative.

Highlighting the role of technology, Dr. Singh spoke about how Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) tools are transforming healthcare by improving efficiency and reducing wait times. He shared his experiences with Telemedicine, which has expanded healthcare access to remote villages, and noted the need for a balanced approach that includes human intervention alongside AI.

In closing, Dr. Jitendra Singh called for robust linkages between industry, academia, research, and entrepreneurship to achieve the vision of a healthy India by 2047.