India MedTech Expo enabled MedTech industry to showcase advancements, innovations, says MoS Bhagwanth Khuba

Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], August 19 : Union Minister of State for Chemicals & Fertilizers Bhagwanth Khuba on Saturday addressed the valedictory session of the India MedTech Expo 2023 in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar district.
The session was also attendeded by Gujarat State Health Minister Rushikesh Ganeshbhai Patel.
Khuba said that “the India MedTech Expo 2023 has enabled the Indian MedTech industry to showcase their advancements, innovations, and contributions of the Indian MedTech industry on the global stage”.
Rushikesh Patel stated that there is a huge talent pool in the country and several technological innovations are taking place in the medical device sector.
“Gujarat is a leading state in both pharma and medical devices sectors in the country and the Government of Gujarat is committed to build an ecosystem providing requisite infrastructure to young entrepreneurs, who are waiting for appropriate opportunity”, he stated.
S Aparna, Secretary, Union Pharma Secretary termed India MedTech Expo 2023 a grand success and stated that” the expo has provided a clear message that the country’s medical devices sector is all set to take off, innovate and grow”.
She also reiterated that both the Central and State Governments are willing to facilitate accelerated growth of medical devices sector and expressed hope that sector will soon chart a successful course similar to the Pharma Sector.
“The expo provided a crucial platform for all stakeholders come under one platform and exchange ideas and information”, she further stated.
The Expo witnessed large participation from Global and Indian companies including MSMEs, Start-ups, Academic and Research Institutions, State Governments, Central and state procurement agencies and Regulatory Agencies. Government of Gujarat provided the necessary support and facilitated the event.
It was informed that more than 10,000+ visitors visited the India MedTech Expo 2023 and more than 4000 meetings were held in Buyer-Seller meets in the first two days. There was participation from 225 companies - Indian (Including MSMEs) and Foreign companies operating in India, 80 Start-ups and 7 States - Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.
Government Agencies and institutions viz. Department of Pharmaceuticals, GeM, ICMR, IPC, CDSCO, NPPA and BIS also participated. R&D Pavilion at the expo witnessed 58 R&D projects by 42 companies. Future Pavilion showcased 74 future technologies and products from 65 companies and organisations. There were also 8 Gold and 10 Silver sponsors for the event. In the exhibition, a range of medical equipment ranging from the state-of-the-art imaging systems to precision surgical instruments, from wearable health monitors to AI-driven diagnostic tools were on display.
Various sessions on themes relevant for the medical device sector were also conducted during the course of the three-day Expo.
On the occasion, nine startups were felicitated for their innovations in the field of MedTech by MoS Bhagwanth Khuba in the presence of Rushikesh Ganeshbhai and S Aparna.
Earlier, an Open House session chaired by Drugs Controller General of India Rajeev Raghuvanshi was also held with participation of MedTech Regulators and Industry players.
Key gaps and challenges faced by the medical device manufacturers were discussed along with their potential solutions.
Rajeev Raghuvanshi said that “there is a huge opportunity in medical device sector to grow and replace imports with indigenization, particularly if we are able to produce good quality products”.
Participating in the session, Kamlesh K Pant, Chairman, National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) emphasized on the need for Research & Development and innovations to remain competitive at the global stage.
A workshop on “Cybersecurity in Medical Devices: Quality System Considerations and Content of Premarket Submissions” was also held wherein industry experts deliberated on the importance of cyber security for medical devices and briefed the participants on the ways to identify such attacks as well as the danger that unauthorized access to a medical device may pose to patients.
Experts also suggested ways to counter cyber-attacks on medical device, under various circumstances.
Ashutosh Agarwal- Deputy Director- Legal Metrology, Department of Consumer Affairs; Manish Pande, Director & Head PAD, Division, Quality Council of India, Manju Sharma, Additional CEO, Government e Marketplace – GeM, Chandan Kumar, Deputy Director & Scientist-C, Bureau of Indian Standards, HG Koshia, Commissioner Food and Drug Control Administration, Government of Gujarat, Rajiv Gandhi, Chairman, FICCI - Gujarat State Council, Vivek Shah, CEO, Meril Life Sciences and other delegates from the Government, Industry and Academia were present on the occasion.