New export promotion council for medical devices

The Central government has sanctioned a new export promotion council for medical devices under the administrative control of the department of pharmaceuticals. The new council will be headquartered in Greater Noida, with regional offices in Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad.

In an official communication issued on September 21, the department of commerce said that initial funding support of ₹3 crore and free space at the upcoming Medical Devices Park Common Facility Centre, Greater Noida, will be provided.

India exported ₹23,766 crore worth of medical devices in 2021-22, up from the previous year's ₹19,736 crore.

“The long-sought Medical Devices Exports Promotion Council is a strategic step that will go a long way in accelerating the exports and manufacturing growth of this sector. This will help bring in coordinated inter-ministerial policy measures for unleashing the huge export potential and investment potential of over ₹80,000 crore for manufacturing medical devices for the global market in our quest to be one of the top five preferred supplier bases of medical devices worldwide,” Rajiv Nath, forum coordinator, Association of Indian Medical Device Industry, said.

The new council will have special panels to promote specific categories of medical devices like disposables, consumables, orthopaedic implants, IVD equipment and reagents, surgical instruments, etc. There will also be special groups that focus on policy advocacy, technology upgradation and transfer and start-ups.

The regional office in Visakhapatnam will be set up by the end of 2023. The Hyderabad regional office is expected to be ready by 2025.

The official communication said the chairman and vice-chairman of the new council will be elected among members who are manufacturers or processors of medical devices.

There are 14 export promotion councils that are functioning under the administrative control of the Department of Commerce including the pharmaceutical export promotion council and the basic chemicals, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics export promotion council. The approval for a new medical device council has also come from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Export promotion councils, registered as non-profit organisations under the Companies Act/ Societies Registration Act, perform both advisory and executive functions and are the registering authorities for exporters.