Centre operationalizes Export Promotion Council for Medical Devices

The Centre has made the Export Promotion Council for Medical Devices (EPCMD) functional, with members having been on-boarded, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

The Centre announced the established of the council three years ago to drive the growth of exports of medical device sector. The department of commerce approved the creation of a separate Export Promotion Council for Medical Devices under the administrative control of the department of pharmaceuticals.

Commenting on the role and benefits of the council, Praveen Mittal, executive director, EPCMD, said in a statement, “The medical devices sector has been identified as a sunrise sector and holds vast potential for innovation and economic growth. With the establishment of EPCMD, India now has a focused institutional mechanism to drive exports and boost domestic manufacturing.”

“EPCMD is committed to supporting Indian manufacturers and unlocking new international trade opportunities for the sector. This initiative will play a vital role in helping India reach a USD 30 billion market size by 2030. Our mission is to take India-made, high-quality medical devices to global markets, enhance India’s competitiveness, and contribute to improved global health standards.”

There already has been pharmaceutical export promotion council in place for the ease of drugs exports.

The industry welcomed the move.

“The creation of EPCMD marks the fulfilment of an important request we have pursued for over a decade. The formation of this dedicated council will act as a catalyst in transforming India into a global hub for medical device innovation, manufacturing, and exports and is expected to be the next biggest success story after IT and pharma. AiMeD looks forward to working closely with EPCMD to ensure this opportunity brings real growth, employment, and improved global health outcomes as well as work to diligently increase our exports so that they overtake our imports,” said Rajiv Nath, forum coordinator, AiMED (The Association of Indian Medical Device Industry).

According to estimates, medical device exports are currently valued around ₹31,672 crore ($3.7 billion) annually, with a growth of 14% over the previous year. The top five countries India currently exports medical devices to are the US, Germany, China, the Netherlands and Brazil. Hindustan Times