Budget 2026: Pharma, MedTech sectors seek structured funding push for R&D and innovation
Ahead of the Union Budget 2026, industry leaders from the pharmaceutical and MedTech sectors have called for a structured funding framework to deepen innovation and research and development (R&D), saying this is critical for realising India’s Viksit Bharat vision.Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd Chairman Satish Reddy said India’s pharmaceutical industry is undergoing a strategic transition from volume-led expansion to value-driven growth. He noted that closer alignment between science, policy and industry is essential to advance innovation across the value chain. “With the sector poised to play a pivotal role in realising the vision of Viksit Bharat and its ambition of becoming a $500 billion industry by 2047, expectations from the Union Budget 2026 centre on the creation of a structured funding framework to deepen innovation and R&D across the country,” he said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
MedTech push, duty rationalisation
Echoing similar views, Poly Medicure Ltd managing director Himanshu Baid said India needs a policy approach that reduces cost disadvantages, nurtures local innovation and enables faster market access to build a competitive MedTech ecosystem. He proposed a dedicated Rs 1,000-crore MedTech R&D and clinical validation fund to support indigenous product development and global competitiveness.Baid also flagged concerns over the inverted duty structure, where many finished devices attract 5 per cent GST while inputs are taxed at 18 per cent, leading to working-capital pressures. ZEISS India CFO Dhaval Radia said further rationalisation of customs duties and simplified governance would be key to improving cost competitiveness and long-term investment planning.
AI, preventive healthcare in focus
Philips Indian subcontinent head of Finance Dev Tripathy said new PLI schemes should support holistic MedTech growth and emphasised incentives for AI-led innovation, job creation and Global Capability Centres to position India as a global player, as per PTI.Apollo Hospitals’ Shobana Kamineni urged a prevention-first healthcare model, calling preventive healthcare India’s next potential global export. Rainbow Children’s medicare chairman Ramesh Kancharla sought tax deductions of up to Rs 10,000 per child for essential diagnostics and annual check-ups to promote early intervention and a healthier future generation.
