India’s pharmaceutical industry emerged among the top sectors that attracted the largest research and development (R&D) spend in the last fiscal, but domestic firms still are way behind when it comes to filing patents, according to the Economic Survey 2011-12.
“According to estimates in 2010-11, the sectors which attracted the largest R&D expenditures were pharmaceuticals, electrical and non-electrical machinery, transport equipment, electronics, and plastics,” it said.
The R&D intensity for the pharmaceuticals sector was much higher than that for other sectors, it added.
The survey, however, expressed concern over the less numbers of patents filed in India through indigenous research.
“Although there have been substantial increases in growth rates of patents filed in India during the last decade, the share of patents filed for work in India through indigenous research is less than 20 per cent of the total,” it said.
According to the survey, services (financial and non-financial), telecom, construction, drugs and pharmaceuticals, metallurgical industries and power were the sectors that attracted maximum FDI during the first nine months of 2011-12.
For the pharmaceutical sector, in November last year the Government decided that FDI, up to 100 per cent for brownfield investments, would have to take its approval.