Union Budget 2026: FM Nirmala Sitharaman proposes ‘Biopharma Shakti’ with Rs 10K crore outlay
Union Budget 2026 highlights Biopharma Shakti with an outlay of Rs 10K crore, aimed at boosting India’s biopharma, biotech, innovation, healthcare research, and life sciences ecosystem.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman began her ninth straight Union Budget for the fiscal year 2026–2027 on Sunday, February 1, 2026. During the Budget 2026-27 session, the government announced 'Biopharma Shakti', meaning a biopharma strategy for health advancement through knowledge, technology, and innovation. India's disease burden is observed to be shifting towards non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cancer and autoimmune disorders.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, "India's disease burden is observed to be shifting towards non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cancer and auto-immune diseases. Biological medicines are key to longevity and quality of life at affordable costs. To develop India as a global bio-pharma manufacturing hub, I propose the bio-pharma, Shakti, with an outlay of 10,000 crore over the next five years."
"It will also create a network of 1,000 accredited India clinical trials sites. We propose to strengthen the Central Drug Standard Control Organisation to meet global standards and approve timeframes through a dedicated scientific review and specialists," she added.