Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal chaired a high-level roundtable meeting in New Delhi. The meeting focused on ways to strengthen India’s biopharma startup ecosystem and accelerate the growth of the bioeconomy. Discussions focus on regulatory reforms, faster approvals, improved access to funding and development of shared research infrastructure to support biopharma startups.
The roundtable organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in collaboration with NITI Aayog and the NITI Frontier Tech Hub, brought together policymakers, industry stalwarts and biopharma startups gathered together at Vanijya Bhawan.
Goyal emphasized the need to leverage India’s scientific capabilities and entrepreneurial potential to position the country as a global leader in the bioeconomy. He called for faster regulatory approvals, better access to finance and stronger collaboration among industry, academia and the Government.
The discussions covered a proposed regulatory sandbox, single-window clearance, global regulatory alignment and simplified patent application processes. Participants also examined the implementation of Biopharma SHAKTI, announced in the Union Budget 2026–27.
The roundtable also discussed developing shared laboratories, testing facilities and clinical trial infrastructure to reduce operational costs and support the growth of biopharma startups.
Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow at NITI Aayog, highlighted the importance of collaboration among the startup, industry and research ecosystems, while NITI Aayog member Prof. Govardhan Das emphasized strengthening research capabilities and commercializing scientific innovations.
The meeting also included discussions on promoting domestic life sciences manufacturing, expediting customs clearance for laboratory equipment and reagents, and simplifying access to government schemes. Goyal emphasized the need for time-bound action on the recommendations emerging from the discussions and stronger inter-ministerial coordination.
(PIB)
