Made in India, Built for the World: Inside India’s Push to Become a Global MedTech Hub

India is shifting its medical device strategy from import substitution toward high-value manufacturing, deeper localisation, innovation and global exports. Its success will depend on stronger R&D, predictable regulation, international quality standards, domestic component supply chains and reliable after-sales maintenance.

India's ambition to become a global medical device manufacturing hub is entering a more demanding phase. The challenge is no longer simply to manufacture more equipment domestically, but to increase local technological content, build capabilities in sophisticated devices, meet international quality standards and create an industry capable of competing in export markets.

That direction emerged strongly at the 9th India Medical Device 2026 conference in New Delhi, where policymakers, regulators and industry leaders focused on deeper localisation, innovation, regulatory predictability and equipment maintenance. For India, the implications extend beyond healthcare: the sector could influence manufacturing investment, skilled employment, technological development and the country's position in global supply chains.

From Import Substitution to a Global MedTech Play

Department of Pharmaceuticals Secretary Manoj Joshi put India's medical device market at around $16 billion, compared with a global market exceeding $600 billion. That gap explains why policymakers are increasingly looking beyond domestic demand.

India has developed manufacturing capabilities in consumables and disposables and is assembling more sophisticated diagnostic and imaging equipment. The next challenge is increasing how much of the technology and components inside those products is actually produced domestically.

This distinction matters. A device assembled in India can still depend heavily on imported components, limiting domestic value addition and leaving manufacturers exposed to international supply disruptions.

For policymakers, deeper localisation could support industrial resilience and create opportunities for component manufacturers, engineering companies and technology suppliers. But localisation cannot become an objective detached from competitiveness. Medical devices require precision, reliability and consistent quality, meaning domestic suppliers must be able to match international standards.

The policy test will therefore be whether India can replace external dependence with competitive domestic capabilities rather than simply shifting final assembly into the country.

High-End Devices Put Regulation and Innovation to the Test

India's ambitions become more challenging in sophisticated Class C and Class D medical devices and in vitro diagnostics.

Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, Drugs Controller General of India, identified indigenous capability in these higher-risk and technologically complex products as an important priority. Moving into these categories would require more than manufacturing capacity. Companies would need stronger R&D, engineering expertise, quality-management systems and specialised talent.

For Indian manufacturers, success could provide access to higher-value segments and overseas markets. For workers and research institutions, an expanding MedTech ecosystem could increase demand for engineers, researchers, software specialists, regulatory professionals and trained technicians.

Hospitals could potentially benefit from broader domestic sourcing and more resilient supply chains. However, lower costs or improved availability should not be assumed; those outcomes would depend on competition, manufacturing economics, quality and servicing.

Regulators will face an equally significant challenge.

Industry wants faster, transparent and predictable approvals, particularly when companies are investing substantial resources in product development. Patients and healthcare providers, however, need confidence that efficiency does not come at the expense of safety.

As India moves towards higher-risk devices, regulatory capacity will therefore need to develop alongside manufacturing capability. The goal cannot simply be faster approvals, but predictable and scientifically credible regulation.

India Wants to Be More Than the World's MedTech Factory

The opportunity also extends beyond manufacturing physical devices.

Tushar Sharma, Chair of the FICCI Medical Devices Committee and Managing Director and General Manager for India and South Asia at Abbott Healthcare, highlighted investments in R&D centres, Global Capability Centres, engineering, software, clinical research, manufacturing and service networks.

This broader investment could strengthen India's position because modern medical technology increasingly combines hardware, software, data and specialised engineering.

For multinational companies, India can potentially offer manufacturing capacity, technical talent and access to a large healthcare market. For domestic suppliers, multinational investment could create opportunities to participate in international value chains.

Yet policymakers will need to look beyond the headline value of investments. More factories and global capability centres do not automatically translate into indigenous intellectual property, domestic technology ownership or globally competitive Indian companies.

The more meaningful indicators will be whether Indian suppliers move into higher-value activities, whether R&D and product development deepen domestically, and whether Indian companies successfully enter international markets.

FICCI Director General Jyoti Vij highlighted R&D, resilient supply chains, advanced manufacturing, internationally aligned quality standards and digital technologies among the requirements for future growth.

For investors, progress in these areas could make India a more attractive MedTech base. But regulatory predictability, quality infrastructure, skilled workers and dependable supply networks will remain critical to investment decisions.

The Device Is Only as Valuable as Its Uptime

The conference also brought attention to an often overlooked part of the medical-device ecosystem: what happens after equipment reaches a hospital.

The release of the white paper Strengthening of Service and Maintenance of Medical Equipment in India signals greater attention to equipment safety, reliability, lifespan and uninterrupted operation.

This could have significant implications for healthcare providers. Buying sophisticated equipment represents only part of its lifecycle cost and value. Hospitals also need installation support, preventive maintenance, spare parts, repairs and trained technicians.

For manufacturers, this means competition could increasingly extend beyond product specifications and price to service quality and equipment uptime. It could also create opportunities for specialised maintenance businesses, training providers and technical workers.

For policymakers, however, new questions emerge around maintenance standards, technician skills, spare-parts availability and manufacturer responsibilities.

Ultimately, India's MedTech ambition will be judged by more than the number of devices manufactured domestically. Policymakers will need to track domestic value addition, critical component production, R&D capability, regulatory performance, exports and international approvals.

Manufacturers will have to demonstrate that Indian-made products can compete on quality, technology and reliability rather than price alone. Hospitals will need confidence that those devices can be maintained throughout their operating lives, while investors will look for predictable regulation and scalable supply chains.

For India, the opportunity is therefore considerably larger than import substitution. The country is attempting to move from being primarily a large medical-device market towards becoming a meaningful participant in the global MedTech value chain. Whether it succeeds will depend on something harder than expanding factory capacity: building the technology, regulation, supplier networks and lifecycle support required to compete globally.