Novartis' company Alcon expects rapid growth in the vision-care segment of its business in India, said Mr Jawed Zia, Managing Director of Alcon India.
In the post-merger scenario, there will be more investments in this segment, he said, without giving details. The company's business is structured along three pillars – surgical, pharma and vision care – and globally, they contribute almost equally to the turnover.
Novartis had globally merged eye-care company Alcon in April this year, after it had taken full control of the company late last year in an estimated $13-billion deal.
In India, the operations mirror the global alignment, he told
Recently it installed its LenSx Laser at Thane's Wavikar Eye Institute, making it South Asia's first institute to have this blade-free cataract surgery technology, said Dr C.M. Wavikar, Medical Director.
Though expensive, at Rs 80,000 (as compared to Rs 30,000 with the older technology) – Dr Wavikar said, this advanced technology resulted in greater precision and predictability, besides faster recovery and less trauma in cataract operations.
Meanwhile, Alcon is operationally integrated with Novartis – though it operates as a Novartis subsidiary in India, Mr Zia said. The vision care business from Novartis has aligned into Alcon, but there has been no rationalisation, he added.
With a 600-employee-strong team, the company operates out of Bangalore, though it manufactures some of its products through third-party manufacturing, he said.
Though Alcon has been in India for about two decades, it has been a legal entity in the country for the last 11 years, he said. The company has a tie-up with Leica for its microscopes, he said, adding that they would be interested in similar collaborations to sell quality products as part of its portfolio.