Indian pharma must speed innovation or risk being overtaken by China

Nearly 90% of international pharmaceutical executives consider China a better choice than India for low-cost drug manufacturing, according to a newly-released survey by Bain & Co, a global business consulting group. Furthermore, only 17% of the survey's respondents cite innovation as a key asset of Indian drug makers.

Bain's sampling of 179 drugmakers' executives with headquarters in North America, Europe, Asia and India also expressed concerns about intellectual property protection (56%), parallel trade (52%) and regulatory uncertainty (46%) affecting the Indian industry.

"The Indian pharmaceutical industry now stands at the crossroads," commented Ashish Singh, managing director of Bain & Co India and leader of the consulting firm's Indian Pharma Survey. "If India is looking to be the international home for quality generic drugs, it needs to move beyond a low-cost mindset and accelerate its innovation efforts," he warned.