Finshots Daily How reliant is the Indian pharma industry on China?
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Oct 24, 2025 Explore the intricate dependency of India's pharmaceutical industry on China for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Discover how regulatory shifts and market dynamics led to this reliance and highlighted vulnerabilities during the pandemic. Learn about government initiatives like the PLI scheme aimed at regaining self-sufficiency. Delve into China's advantages—from resource control to cost-effective infrastructure—and what India can realistically achieve to bolster its own API production future.
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India's Hidden API Dependence
- India makes finished medicines for 200+ countries but imports 60–70% of key APIs and KSMs from China.
- Some critical inputs have import dependence close to 100%, creating systemic vulnerability.
Pandemic Exposed Supply Fragility
- The pandemic exposed the risk when Chinese factory shutdowns spiked prices for Paracetamol and Azithromycin.
- Supply chains froze and global production slowed, revealing a lack of control over essential medicines.
Scale Up Via PLI And Bulk Parks
- The government launched a Rs 7,000 crore PLI and approved three bulk drug parks to rebuild domestic API capacity.
- Firms have started investing in antibiotic and KSM plants, but scale remains limited.