New Delhi, August 28: The Centre has invited applications under the ₹5,000-crore Promotion of Research and Innovation in Pharma-MedTech Sector (PRIP) scheme, stepping up efforts to strengthen research, product development and innovation in India’s pharmaceutical and medical technology industries.
The initiative is aimed at helping Indian companies, startups and research institutions turn promising scientific ideas into medicines, medical devices and healthcare technologies that can reach patients.
The Department of Pharmaceuticals says the scheme is designed to build an innovation-driven pharma and MedTech ecosystem and support around 300 projects, with the potential to generate about ₹11,000 crore in total R&D investment.
Under the revised framework, eligible startups and MSMEs working on early-stage projects costing up to ₹9 crore can receive assistance of up to ₹5 crore. Later-stage projects with costs of up to ₹285 crore can receive financial support of up to ₹100 crore, subject to the scheme’s conditions.
The programme covers areas such as new medicines, complex generics, biosimilars and innovative medical devices. Additional support is available for strategic public-health priorities, including rare diseases, antimicrobial resistance and vaccine-preventable diseases.
The scheme also encourages collaboration between industry and academic institutions so that research developed in laboratories can be converted into practical healthcare products.
For India, the initiative could help strengthen domestic R&D, encourage private investment, create skilled employment and reduce dependence on imported medical technologies. It also supports the country’s broader ambition of moving from being primarily a major producer of affordable medicines to becoming a stronger global hub for healthcare innovation.
The government expects the initiative to create a stronger pipeline of home-grown pharmaceutical and MedTech products while improving India’s competitiveness in the global healthcare market.