In order to uplift the medical devices sector in the country, incentives such as soft loans for setting up manufacturing plants and rationalization of inverted duty structure can be given.India continues to be an emerging market in the global medical technologies space, however, it has not reached its true potential, both in terms of the market opportunity and building a hub for innovation and manufacturing, said the CII- BCG report titled 'Medical Technology: Vision 2025'.
It said India holds a $50 billion opportunity in the medical technology sector by 2025. Listing a 10-point agenda for the government, the study said there is a need to increase government healthcare spending besides providing single window authority for regulation.
On a priority basis, the government should take steps in the next twelve months to boost the medical technology industry, increase spending on healthcare and provide a platform to participate in government purchasing across schemes and states, it suggested.
Besides, it sought "specific tax incentives and soft loans for setting up manufacturing plants in line with competing destinations such as Malaysia, rationalization of the inverted duty structure for raw material and components, to make indigenous manufacturing more attractive".
It also pitched for setting up a single window authority for the regulation of medical technology manufacturing and enhancing the capability of designated manufacturing hubs.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement, quoting Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Commerce Sudhanshu Pandey, CII underscored the need for enhancing FDI in the medical device industry.
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More inflow of FDI could also make India a hub for medical device production not only for catering to domestic use but also exports, he said. He added that states like Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are focusing on setting up hubs for manufacturing medical equipment.
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"Product pricing should be transparent, predictable and economical to make the medical treatment affordable to the common man," he added.
Source-PTI