Stories
India's Robotic Surgery Ecosystem: Blueprint for Global Medtech Innovation?
F
Firstpost•05-10-2026, 00:33
India's Robotic Surgery Ecosystem: Blueprint for Global Medtech Innovation?
- •India's medical-device sector aims to shift from import dependence to indigenous manufacturing and global competitiveness, with imports still accounting for 60% of domestic consumption.
- •Dr. Sudhir Srivastava, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of SS Innovations International, suggests surgical robotics can transform India into a global medtech innovator.
- •The challenge lies in developing an integrated ecosystem for engineering, clinical validation, and manufacturing to scale robotic surgery technologies.
- •Scaling indigenous medical technology, especially through wider adoption in Tier 2 and Tier 3 hospitals, is crucial for affordability and refining products for international markets.
- •True Atmanirbharta in medtech requires covering the full value chain, from IP and precision engineering to manufacturing and global distribution, not just assembling imported components.
Key Questions Answered
Government data shows that imports still account for around 60% of India's domestic medical-device consumption.
Dr Srivastava suggests that wider adoption of indigenous technologies across Tier 2 and Tier 3 hospitals can increase production volumes, lower manufacturing costs, and improve accessibility while helping companies refine their products.
He pointed to the government's 2026 initiative to examine the regulation of refurbished devices as evidence of the ongoing tension between expanding access through certified refurbished equipment and assessing complex medical technologies on total lifecycle value rather than initial purchase price alone.
