CLINICAL TRIALS SECTOR GROWING IN INDIA

According to newly researched data, clinical trials worth US$100mn were undertaken in India last year. This figure is forecast to reach US$200mn by 2007, and potentially as much as US$1bn by 2010, as reforms to India's intellectual property legislation take effect.

The Indian government is keen to take a larger slice of the global clinical trial outsourcing market, worth roughly US$7.8bn. However, there is evidence that not all are convinced by recent improvements to Indian laws, with the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) still classifying India as a "priority watch" country on intellectual property protection.

Meanwhile, Indian industry sources hope that a new Drug and Cosmetics (Amendment) Bill will provide significant new provisions against counterfeiting and further strengthen patent rights. The country has both the potential and the need to become an important market for clinical trials, with 40mn asthmatics and 34mn diabetics. However, with tough competition from rival low-cost Asian markets, India will have to work hard to boost clinical research. The industry remains largely based in the US, which accounted for over 60% of the 90,000 trials carried out in 2003.