Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026-27 on Sunday, marking her ninth consecutive budget presentation. In a major move for the healthcare sector, she announced a new scheme named ‘Biopharma Shakti’ with a total allocation of ₹10,000 crore. The government plans to spend this amount over the next five years to transform India into a global hub for bio-pharmaceutical manufacturing and research.
What is the Biopharma Shakti scheme?
The primary objective of the ‘Biopharma Shakti’ initiative is to boost the domestic production of complex medicines known as biologics and biosimilars. By increasing local manufacturing, the government aims to significantly reduce the cost of medicines for critical illnesses. This will directly benefit patients suffering from cancer, diabetes, and various auto-immune diseases. The focus is to make high-quality treatment affordable for the common people as the burden of non-communicable diseases grows in the country.
Where will the money be invested?
The allocated fund will be used to strengthen the infrastructure and regulatory framework of the pharma sector. The government has outlined several strategic initiatives under this plan:
- New Institutes: 3 new National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) will be established, and 7 existing ones will be upgraded.
- Clinical Trials: A network of 1,000 accredited clinical trial sites will be set up across India to speed up research.
- Regulatory Reforms: The Central Drug Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) will be modernized to match global standards for faster drug approvals.
