State govt. keen on engaging with medtech sector

Telangana government is keen on engaging with the medtech sector and as part of this approach has decided to set up a common testing laboratory, in partnership with the industry, at the Medical Devices Park in Sultanpur, Industries and IT Minister K.T. Rama Rao said on Wednesday.

Spread on nearly 280 acres, the park, developed by the government, about 50-km. from Hyderabad, is the largest such in Asia. About 25 companies have signed up to set up units there.

Manufacturing soon

While six of them will be launching manufacturing operations in July, on the same day, stent maker Sahajanand Medical Technologies (SMT) will be commencing operations at what would be Asia’s largest such unit in December.

Besides the common testing facility, the State government has decided to set up an export promotion council for medtech sector in Hyderabad and also champion the causes of the sector, the Minister said after a meeting with the Medical Devices makers at BioAsia 2020.

In an interaction with media, he said among the challenges representatives of medtech sector raised were GST rates and inverted duty structure. One aspect they sought to highlight was, how in the light of the levies, it is cheaper to import than manufacture, something that goes against the concept of Make in India. The sector representatives also underscored the need for quality certification agency for medical devices. The Minister said he assured them that the State government will take up their causes before the Centre.

“I asked them to give me inputs so that I can take them up with relevant [Central] ministries, be it Commerce, Health or Pharma. We will continue to promote this sector by way engaging with them,” he said. On the land available for allotment in Sultanpur park, he said about 80 acres are left, but that should not be a limitation as the facility can be expanded. The objective behind extending support was to improve affordability, accessibility and availability of healthcare, he said.

Land allotment letters

Addressing the valedictory of BioAsia 2020, Mr. Rao said the convention, focused on life sciences sector and in its 17th edition, had grown in size, stature and value. Mr Rao also handed over land allotment letters to 5 MedTech companies who are setting up their units at MedTech Park in Hyderabad.

He also presented awards to five successful start-up companies that were selected from over 75 short-listed companies and over 350 applications received. As part of the start-up stage event, the top five start-ups — Lycan 3D, Callzy, Oncosimis Biotech, Heamac Healthcare, Flexmotiv Technologies — showcased their solutions.