A cancer patient in Mumbai could soon pay 15 per cent less for European biologics. An Indian pharmaceutical manufacturer might capture new European markets worth billions. Yet the same trade agreement enabling both outcomes has sparked fierce debate about whether India‘s generic drug industry—supplying 20 per cent of global generics and keeping essential medicines affordable worldwide—faces existential threat.
The India-EU Free Trade Agreement, crowned the “mother of all deals” at the 27th January 2026 New Delhi Summit and propelling bilateral trade towards €200 billion by 2030, vaporises tariffs on 96.6 per cent of European Union exports to India, including pharmaceuticals dropping from 11 per cent to zero and medical devices shedding up to 22 per cent duties, whilst prying open European Union markets for Indian generics and medical technology. As Sudarshan Jain of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance celebrates “near-zero tariff access enhancing trade opportunities,” an anonymous Indian expert warns: “The opening up is favourable to the EU. This will certainly impact the Indian pharma industry.”
Tariff Revolution: What Gets Cheaper and When
The Free Trade Agreement‘s fiscal transformation nullifies European Union pharmaceutical tariffs averaging 11 per cent over five to seven years, with €1.1 billion in 2024 exports—encompassing cancer drugs and specialty therapeutics—flooding Indian pharmacies at prices 10 to 15 per cent cheaper for patients. Medical devices including pacemakers, ventilators, and diagnostic equipment shed 22 per cent chemical and equipment duties, slashing landed costs whilst enabling Ayushman Bharat—covering 1.4 billion citizens—to absorb advanced technology without premium price spikes. Reciprocity operates powerfully in India‘s favour for generics: the European Union abolishes tariffs on over 90 per cent of product lines for Indian generic and biosimilar manufacturers who previously faced negligible duties, with micro, small, and medium enterprises comprising 80 per cent of the sector now scaling European Union compliance requirements via smoother tender processes.
Industry experts caveat that “reducing tariffs for products imported from the EU from 11% to zero is unlikely to affect the Indian industry as most are proprietary drugs,” with India‘s massive generic volumes insulating domestic manufacturers from European competition in off-patent segments. Medical devices particularly dazzle in this tariff elimination, with the European Union‘s €3.2 billion in chemical exports shedding 22 per cent duties entirely, spurring active pharmaceutical ingredient localisation that could reduce India‘s 55 per cent dependency on Chinese suppliers through European alternatives.
Regulatory mutual recognition frameworks on technical barriers to trade and sanitary measures slash approval timeframes by six to 12 months, whilst the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance celebrates that “expected removal of tariffs will enhance trade and strengthen collaboration,” with TRIPS-compliant intellectual property provisions safeguarding India‘s ability to produce biosimilars of blockbusters like Humira and Januvia without data exclusivity overreach. Weight-loss medications including GLP-1 receptor agonists like semaglutide could see “faster entry of biosimilars reducing dependency on imports” as regulatory harmonisation accelerates, with economic modelling suggesting modest GDP gains of 0.12 to 0.13 per cent positioning pharmaceuticals and devices as bilateral trade ballast.
The Generic Drug Dilemma: Export Boom Versus Patent Pressure
India‘s pharmaceutical titan—provisioning 20 per cent of global generics from a $50 billion domestic market—harvests European Union market access through near-zero tariffs vaulting financial year 2025‘s $76 billion total exports, with the pharmaceutical sector’s $27 billion share poised for substantial growth as micro, small, and medium enterprises invest in European Union tender compliance infrastructure. The European Union simultaneously reaps proprietary drug market access for oncology monoclonal antibodies and rare disease orphan drugs, enabling Indian hospitals to acquire state-of-the-art therapeutics without the 11 per cent tariff burden, whilst medical device localisation through Production Linked Incentive schemes worth ₹4,000 crore accelerates domestic manufacturing. Industry analysis suggests “easier access to European markets could boost exports whilst strengthening India‘s role” in global healthcare provisioning, with active pharmaceutical ingredient diversification away from Chinese suppliers reducing strategic vulnerability.
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Medical technology transformation promises European imaging and implant equipment at reduced costs, accelerating Make in India initiatives towards 60 per cent domestic value addition by 2028, whilst mutual recognition frameworks fast-track pacemaker and ventilator approvals. Political criticism emerges from certain quarters warning that “India’s automobile and pharmaceutical sectors will be severely affected” by European competition threatening process patent protections, yet TRIPS compliance provisions appear to preserve core safeguards.
The $27 trillion combined market encompassing two billion consumers spotlights pharmaceuticals as the crown jewel, with European Union pharmaceutical exports to India projected to double by 2032 whilst Indian generics maintain their fortified position. Crucially, intellectual property equilibrium endures without patent linkage or data exclusivity provisions that could have delayed generic competition, with India‘s Section 3(d) safeguard against evergreening remaining intact as the European Union‘s demand for “high level of protection” yields to India‘s public health primacy. Industry leaders anticipate that “reduced tariffs will enhance ability to scale exports” whilst regulatory harmonisation promises “earlier availability of affordable alternatives” as biosimilar approval pathways streamline.
Patient Impact: Affordability Gains Versus Production Risks
Patients stand at the centre of this pharmaceutical transformation. European Union biologics including Keytruda biosimilars post-2028 patent expiry become cheaper through tariff elimination, whilst cancer and weight-loss drugs democratise as GLP-1 receptor agonists potentially decline from €1,000 to €700 monthly through reduced landed costs. Medical device affordability cascades with diagnostic equipment like MRI scanners shedding 15 per cent cost burdens, expanding rural healthcare outreach through Ayushman Bharat‘s 1.4 billion beneficiaries. Health policy analysts position “affordable weight-loss drugs as pillars of preventive healthcare” curtailing long-term complications from obesity and diabetes through earlier intervention. Access amplification operates through export revenues funding domestic research and development at hubs like Serum Institute and Hyderabad’s biotech cluster now tethered to European Union collaboration, whilst clinical trial harmonisation unlocks €2 billion in contract research organisation pipeline opportunities.
Equity provisions enshrine TRIPS safeguards preserving compulsory licensing authority, ensuring Januvia and Humira biosimilars remain unthreatened with public health imperatives trumping proprietary restrictions. Critical voices alert that European Union market access could “slow down indigenous production” as imports compete with domestic manufacturers, yet India‘s massive production volumes—250 billion doses annually—constitute a formidable competitive moat protecting the generic sector’s core. Global healthcare resonances extend as European Union oncology exports worth €1.1 billion halve treatment costs for Indian patients, whilst Indian vaccines including potential Covishield successors gain European bound pathways, with sustainability commitments on labour standards and greenhouse gas emissions greening pharmaceutical supply chains. International observers note that “EU exports to India could double by 2032“ with patients reaping first-mover access to innovative therapies unavailable domestically.
The India-EU Free Trade Agreement‘s pharmaceutical and medical device transformation—eliminating 11 to 22 per cent tariffs, vaulting generic exports, and calibrating intellectual property through TRIPS compliance—ushers cheaper European Union oncology treatments and devices whilst fortifying India‘s pharmaceutical pharmacy at an affordability apex benefiting patients. The Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance‘s celebration of “trade opportunities” balanced against concerns about patent law fidelity frames a measured ascent delivering €4 billion in European Union savings whilst preserving India‘s $27 billion generic pharmaceutical resilience. This “mother of all deals” doesn’t commoditise health outcomes—it catalyses equitable access, entwining India‘s generics colossus with European Union innovation in public health‘s sovereign symphony where affordability and advancement harmonise rather than clash.