Competition hots up for biosimilars in India

Hetero and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals launches biosimilar Humira (adalimumab) in India. Sun Pharma receives US Food and Drug Administration approval for its biologic drug Ilumya (tildrakizumab) for the treatment of plaque psoriasis. Though the cost of developing niche complex drugs and biosimilars is substantially high, the potential opportunity has got Indian drug majors in a frenzy, reports The Pharma Letter’s India correspondent.

A spate of launches in recent weeks and approvals has turned the spotlight on the mature biosimilar manufacturing ecosystem that exists in India, as well as the positive regulatory environment.

"In the case of emerging economies like India," says a government official, "it is imperative to be able to provide safe and cost effective drugs for its huge, non-insured population. The launch of biosimilars in India has a primary motive: that of making these critical drugs affordable to the people, as in most cases the innovator biological drugs were beyond reach."