India has earned global recognition as the Pharmacy of the World, supplying affordable medicines to over 200 countries and playing a critical role in global healthcare. However, the journey of a medicine does not end at manufacturing. Significant value is lost through stock expiry, unused medicines, substandard products, and treatment failures before medicines achieve their intended health outcomes.
The Leaking Pipeline examines these hidden inefficiencies across India's pharmaceutical value chain and estimates that nearly ₹48,000 crore, almost 24% of the country's domestic pharmaceutical expenditure, is lost annually due to preventable leakages. The report argues that India's next frontier is not only producing more medicines, but ensuring that every medicine manufactured reaches patients safely, is used appropriately, and delivers maximum health value.
Combining policy analysis, global best practices and actionable recommendations, the report proposes a roadmap to strengthen pharmaceutical accountability through improved traceability, efficient recall mechanisms, medicine recovery systems and stronger post-market governance. It also recommends the introduction of a National Drug Recall Policy and a National Medicine Buyback/Take-Back Policy to reduce wastage, improve patient safety, enhance resource efficiency and reinforce India's position as a trusted global leader in pharmaceuticals.
This report offers a practical framework for policymakers, regulators, industry leaders and healthcare stakeholders to build a more resilient, accountable and outcome-oriented pharmaceutical ecosystem
