Telangana has set out an ambitious global vision for its life sciences sector with the launch of the Next-Gen Life Sciences Policy 2026–30, aiming to attract $25 billion in investments, create 5,00,000 new jobs, and position the state among the top five global life sciences clusters by 2030.
Unveiled at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, the policy marks a strategic shift from scale-led pharmaceutical manufacturing to value-driven, innovation-powered growth, with a strong emphasis on frontier R&D, advanced therapeutics, and environmentally sustainable bio-manufacturing.
“We are building one of the world’s most trusted and transformational biosciences ecosystems—driving global health impact from Telangana,” A Revanth Reddy, chief minister of Telangana, said.
Hyderabad hosts a growing concentration of global R&D, digital, and capability centres for leading life sciences companies such as Amgen, Sanofi, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Lilly.
Highlighting recent momentum, D Sridhar Babu, minister for IT, electronics and communications, and industries and commerce, added, “In the last two years alone, we have been able to attract investment to the tune of ₹73,000 crore. With the launch of the new policy, we are now aiming to attract ₹2 lakh crore over the next five years.”
The policy places a strong emphasis on frontier science and advanced manufacturing platforms, including cell and gene therapies, peptides, precision fermentation, and other next-generation modalities.
The policy looks to transform Telangana from a critical node in global supply chains into a global originator of advanced therapies, platforms, and healthcare innovation. A key reform is recognising R&D units as full-fledged industrial enterprises, enabling them to access incentives on par with manufacturing facilities.
This also includes the creation of a Green Pharma City, envisioned as a sustainable industrial cluster built on zero liquid discharge, centralised waste management, energy-efficient systems, and net-zero practices.
The policy also proposes the development of 10 ‘pharma villages’, each spanning 1,000–3,000 acres along the Outer Ring Road, to enable decentralised and balanced industrial growth across the state. These initiatives will be complemented by the expansion of Genome Valley and further strengthening of the Medical Devices Park.
A major highlight of the policy is the establishment of a Life Sciences Innovation Fund, with an initial corpus of ₹100 crore, scalable up to ₹1,000 crore (approximately $111 million), structured through a public–private partnership model.
Additional priority areas include diagnostics and medical electronics, attracting global capability centres (GCCs) and global innovation centres focused on AI, analytics, digital health, and advanced R&D, as well as advancing precision medicine and personalised therapies to deliver more targeted, data-driven healthcare outcomes.
The policy places strong emphasis on talent development through initiatives such as the proposed Telangana School of Life Sciences, alongside industry-aligned curricula, structured internships, and continuous skilling programmes.
Your reaction
Discussion
What's your take on this story?
No comments yet — be the first to share your view.