New Delhi, Aug 28 : From $14.9 billion in FY14 Indian pharma exports have surged to $27.9 billion -- more than 90 per cent growth in the last 10 years, said Jitin Prasada, Union Minister of State (MoS) for Commerce and Industry on Wednesday.

He was speaking at the inauguration of a three-day International Exhibition For Pharma And Healthcare Exhibition (IPHEX 2024) organised by the Pharma Export Promotion Council of India (CAPEXIL) and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the national capital.

The MoS urged the Indian pharmaceutical industry to work towards becoming the healthcare custodian of the world.

'The Indian pharmaceutical sector is a significant contributor to the country's GDP and pharma exports are recovering to pre-pandemic growth levels, with over 9 per cent growth in FY24. From FY14 to FY24, exports surged from $14.9 billion to $27.9 billion, reflecting over 90 per cent growth,' Prasada said.

'With a current Indian market size of $50 billion including exports, the domestic pharma industry aims to expand to $120-130 billion by 2030 including exports, seizing emerging opportunities for growth,' he added.

While the country 'is already recognised as the 'pharmacy of the world'', the Minister called to focus not only 'on strengths in the generic sector', but also to 'try product development, break new grounds".

'Focus on innovation, stress on quality, and work with the world market,' he said while stressing that international competitiveness is very important.

Prasada said that the recently concluded free trade agreements (FTAs) with various countries have helped create the pathway for easier approval for various products and bringing down tariffs.

'Hope the pharma industry will be able to use these new agreements for faster approvals. He also noted that the government has come up with many schemes like the production-linked incentive (PLI) for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and medical devices,' he added.

At the IPHEX 2024, more than 400 major Indian pharma companies will showcase their pharmaceutical products and technologies at the expo. More than 400 foreign buyers from across the world are expected to attend.

/IANS