In the first week of October 2025, the Indianapolis-headquartered Eli Lilly and Co., a prominent Pharma MNC announced that the company will establish a new Manufacturing and Quality Center in Hyderabad and will invest more than $1 Bn over the next few years. The Center will provide advanced technical support and oversight for its contract manufacturing network in India. Existing operations of the company include a commercial site at Gurugram, and specialized operations at Hyderabad and Bengaluru.
This announcement from the U.S.-based company assumed significance as Donald Trump, the US President had announced a 100 per cent tariff on imported branded or patented drugs in the last week of September 2025 which was expected to become effective from October 1, 2025. However, Trump administration postponed the planned tariff on the branded and patented pharma products.
Eli Lilly remained in news during last six months due to its weight-loss drug Mounjaro (tirzepatide) which became second-most selling medicine in terms of value in September 2025 with a revenue of ₹80 Cr. and had a 42.0 per cent jump from its August 2025 revenue of ₹56 Cr. Augmentin, the top selling drug in India had a revenue of ₹85 Cr. for September 2025. Augmentin is also from a well-known Pharma MNC – GSK. Mounjaro was launched in March-2025 and its cumulative revenue stood at ₹233 Crore till September 2025.
Gains are apparent for Pharma MNCs in India as the country presents a huge market opportunity given the size of its population. Against this backdrop, there is a concern that prominent listed subsidiaries of Pharma MNCs do not spend significant amount on R&D in India as reflected in the R&D expenditure incurred by these companies. Even their production capacity primarily caters to the domestic market.
AstraZeneca Pharma spent ₹312.40 Mn on Clinical Trials in 2024-25, down from ₹728.6 Mn in 2023-24. The Company invests in Clinical Trials and other real-world studies for new launches and indications to generate scientific data. On manufacturing front, the company has announced its intention to exit the manufacturing site in Bangalore during 2025-26, the only manufacturing plant that the company has in India.
Abbott India Limited spent just ₹1.10 Crore in the name of R&D for FY25. The company has Corporate Office (remote) located at BKC, Mumbai, one manufacturing plant at Goa, and five Sales Offices at Chembur, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, and Delhi.
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Limited (GSK India) acknowledged in its Annual Report of 2024-25 (p.35) that the industry is transitioning from ‘Make in India’ to ‘Develop in India’ with increased investments in research and development for complex generics, biosimilars, and novel therapies. But there is no mention of R&D by the company in India. GSK India has one manufacturing plant in Nashik, Maharashtra, and works with 20 Contract Manufacturing Organisations (CMOs) across India. As per Annual Report of 2024-25 (p.220), the recurring expenditure charged on R&D charged off to Income Statement amounted to ₹261.19 Lakhs in FY25 as against 254.37 Lakhs in FY24. Revenue from Operations of GSK India for FY25 stood at ₹3,723 Cr.
Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Limited has not spent any amount on R&D during FY25. Underlying reason mentioned for the same by the Company is that the Company avails benefits of R&D of the Procter & Gamble Company, USA and its subsidiaries across the globe so it has not incurred any expenditure on R&D during the FY25. The Current Financial Year of the Company covered a period of 9 months from July 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025, as the Company changed its Financial Year from July 1-June 30. The Company has one manufacturing plant in Goa along with 21 depots/distribution centers/warehouses across India. Percentage of exports to the total turnover of the entity for FY25 stood at 3.71 per cent.
Novartis India had a revenue of ₹3,562.70 million for the FY25, with no expenditure on R&D. The Company cited that Novartis AG, Switzerland has provided technical know-how and technology as and when required, relating to products, quality, marketing etc. Further, it was cited that on-going process involves visits by employees of both companies to each other’s office sites for discussions and training. Novartis AG, the parent company has contemplated to sell its stake in Novartis India Limited (NIL) while it has plans to expand R&D operations through its unlisted unit – Novartis Healthcare Private Limited. In April 2025, the company was in news that market volatility derailed Novartis AG’s plan to sell stake in Novartis India.
Sanofi India Limited has not spent any amount on R&D for FY24. The Company has identified R&D Risk as one major risk as increase in R&D investments enhances capital expenditure, putting pressure on margins and profitability. The Company cited that it focuses on major therapy areas such as Diabetes, Cardiology, Thrombosis, Anti-infectives, and CNS, and it relies on the Sanofi Group’s R&D efforts for commercialization of new products. The Company is following January 1 – December 31 as the Financial Year.
Pfizer journey started in India on November 21, 1950, under the name Dumex Private Limited. In 1965, the company acquired 75 acres of land in Thane to scale up manufacturing, R&D, and quality control capabilities. In 1966, the company came up with Initial Public Offer (IPO) and used the proceeds to commission the Thane plant where it commenced the production of Diabinese thereby becoming the first company to manufacture this anti-diabetic drug in India. In 1980, the company commenced its new basic drugs plant at Kalyani in West Bengal which was sold to Dabur in 1996. Now, the company has just one plant at Goa. There was no R&D expenditure by the company for FY25.
SeQuent Scientific Limited is India’s leading Animal Health player in which more than 51.0 per cent stake is held by CA Harbor Investments, an affiliate of Carlyle Group, a US-based Private Equity firm. Original founders – Arun Kumar and K. R. Ravishankar sold their stake along with other promoters to Carlyle Group in May 2020. R&D Centres of the Company are in India, Spain, Brazil, and Turkey. For not incurring any R&D expenditure, the Company has stated that it carries out R&D activities through its subsidiaries. Hence, the expenditure on R&D activities during the FY25 is Nil. The Company has three manufacturing plants located at Ambernath as well as in Mahad (Maharashtra), and Vizag (Andhra Pradesh).
Gland Pharma is only affiliate of a Pharma MNC that really focused on R&D in India. Fosun Pharma Industrial Pte. Ltd., Singapore holds more than 51.0 per cent stake in Gland Pharma Limited. Gland Pharma was incorporated in 1978 by P. V. N. Raju. Fosun Singapore acquired majority stake in 2017. In FY25, the company spent ₹1,922 Million on R&D which represented 4.7 per cent of the base business revenue. The Company has a R&D team of 250+ members. In FY24, R&D expenditure stood at ₹1,774 Mn (4.3 per cent of revenue from operations), and ₹2,014 Mn in FY23 (5.6 per cent of revenue from operations).
Among nine listed pharma companies in which majority stake is held by foreign-origin parent companies, only exception is Fosun Pharma which has focused on R&D in India through Capital and Recurring investments. Other Pharma MNCs have treated their subsidiaries to penetrate their products in Indian market and are mainly using their small local production base to cater domestic market in India. These listed Pharma MNCs have raised capital in India only but have failed to spend on R&D so India-specific R&D cannot be expected. On the contrary, Indian pharma companies are being compelled to manufacture in the US with the use of tariff threat.
Dr. Anil Kumar Angrish– Associate Professor (Finance and Accounting), Department of Pharmaceutical Management, NIPER S.A.S. Nagar (Mohali), Punjab
Disclaimer: Views are personal and do not represent the views of the Institute.
