Odisha has taken a major stride toward becoming a leading hub for pharmaceuticals and medical devices in eastern India with the launch of the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Policy-2025. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi unveiled the policy at the Odisha Pharma Summit-2025 in Bhubaneswar on December 16, 2025, in the presence of Industries Minister Sampad Chandra Swain and senior officials.

The policy aims to attract ₹25,000 crore in investments and create 1 lakh jobs (direct and indirect) by 2030, positioning the state as a competitive, sustainable destination for life sciences manufacturing. It emphasizes green manufacturing, innovation, local entrepreneurship, and MSME growth while addressing India’s significant reliance on imports particularly in medical devices, where 85% are sourced externally.

Key infrastructure initiatives include the development of two integrated, GMP-ready clusters in Khordha:

Odisha Pharma Park (over 200 acres) for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), bulk drugs, formulations, vaccines, and biologicals.
Odisha MedTech Park (over 200 acres) focused on high-precision medical devices, including in-vitro diagnostics, implants, surgical consumables, imaging equipment, wearables, and digital health devices.

Additional land banks in Berhampur and Cuttack will support future expansion, forming a continuous ‘Pharma-Corridor’ with connectivity to ports (Dhamra, Paradip, Gopalpur) for seamless exports. Parks feature pre-cleared land, centralized waste treatment, Zero Liquid Discharge systems, on-site testing labs, and affordable utilities to slash project setup time by 12–18 months.

Attractive fiscal incentives include:

50% subsidy on concessional land cost for units employing over 200 Odisha-domiciled skilled workers.
30% capital subsidy on eligible plant and machinery (disbursed at up to 6% per annum for 5 years, no upper cap).
25% subsidy (capped at ₹1 crore) for dedicated power infrastructure.
Additional benefits like power subsidies, electricity duty reimbursement, wage incentives (especially for women), and ESI/EPF support.

The policy integrates land, finance, skilled manpower (via industry-academia collaboration), regulatory facilitation, and R&D support to draw anchor investments across APIs, formulations, vaccines, diagnostics, imaging, implants, and wearables. It is anchored in the state’s Industrial Policy Resolution 2022, which identifies pharma, bulk drugs, and medical devices as thrust sectors.

The summit itself generated strong momentum, with investment intents and MoUs worth over ₹7,000 crore signed, reflecting growing industry interest. The Odisha Pharmaceutical Development Cell (OPDC) will oversee implementation and investor facilitation.

This forward-looking policy positions Odisha to capture a significant share of India’s expanding pharma and medtech growth, fostering inclusive, innovation-led development.