New Delhi, December 25, 2023 – In a strategic move towards advancing healthcare solutions and empowering MedTech innovators, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, virtually inaugurated ‘MedTech Mitra.’ The platform is designed to support young talents in shaping their research, knowledge, and logic while facilitating regulatory approvals.
Dr. Mandaviya emphasized the pivotal role of the medical devices sector in India’s healthcare, stating, “The medical devices sector is an essential and integral constituent of India’s healthcare sector. Pursuing the vision of Viksit Bharat, India is taking a holistic approach to health with a vision to transform the health landscape in the country by 2047.”
‘MedTech Mitra’ aims to be more than an ecosystem; it aspires to become a community fostering revolutionary change, according to Prof. S.P. Singh Bhagel, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare. The platform is positioned to empower emerging start-ups, ensuring ease of innovation, research and development, and service delivery, contributing to the vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat.
The initiative is a response to the high import dependence of India’s MedTech sector, reaching up to 80%. Dr. Mandaviya outlined the progress made through production-linked incentive schemes, investments in medical drug parks, MedTech research policy, and MedTech research incentive schemes. He expressed confidence in India’s potential to grow into a $50 billion industry by 2030, acknowledging the sector’s rapid transformation fueled by developments in Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Virtual Reality, and Nano Technology.
Commending the initiative, Prof. S.P Singh Bhagel highlighted ‘MedTech Mitra’ as a platform for budding entrepreneurs and innovators, catalyzing collaboration among various stakeholders to promote progress in the health sector.
Dr. V.K Paul, Member Health, Niti Aayog, emphasized the platform’s role in handholding innovators for clinical evaluations and regulatory compliance. He stated, “MedTech Mitra will empower emerging start-ups and ensure ease of innovation, ease of doing research and development, ease of rendering service in building an Atmanirbhar Bharat.”
The event featured the participation of key officials, including Dr. Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, Drugs Controller General of India, CDSCO, Dr. Rajiv Bahl, Secretary, DHR, and Director General, ICMR, Dr. Suchita Markan Sc-E, Mission In-charge, Medical Device and Diagnostics Mission Secretariat (MDMS), ICMR, and Dr. Taruna Madan Sc-G, Head (Development Research), ICMR, among others.
The launch of ‘MedTech Mitra’ signifies a significant step towards self-sufficiency and innovation in India’s medical technology sector, aligning with the broader vision of a developed and self-reliant Bharat.
