With 23 of the world&rsquo;s top 50 life sciences companies establishing centres in the country, India has emerged as the global hub of Global Capability Centers (GCCs) for life sciences, according to a report on Monday.&nbsp;
The report by advisory firm EY India showed that a majority of the companies established their presence in the country in the last five years. 
This is indicative of India&rsquo;s growing role in driving pharmaceutical research, innovation, and end-to-end value creation.
Notably, the life sciences GCCs have rapidly evolved from traditional back-office roles into strategic innovation engines.
Far from being limited to support functions, these centers now play a critical role in global mandates such as drug discovery, digital therapeutics, and real-world evidence (RWE) analytics, increasingly leveraging artificial intelligence to accelerate pipelines and drive patient-centric innovation, the report said.
&ldquo;Our analysis highlights how India has rapidly evolved from a support base to the very center of innovation for global pharma and healthcare. 
In just five years, GCC penetration in enabling functions like finance, HR, supply chain, and IT has crossed about 60%,&rdquo; said Arindam Sen, Partner and GCC Sector Lead &ndash; Technology, Media &amp;amp; Entertainment and Telecommunications, EY India.
"But what truly stands out is the deepening role in core functions &mdash; from drug discovery and regulatory affairs to medical and commercial operations," Sen added.
Further, the analysis showed that penetration across both enabling and core functions has accelerated sharply in the last five years.
On the enabling side, life sciences GCCs in India now handle 70% of finance, 75% of HR, 62% of supply chain, and 67% of IT functions for their global life sciences firms.
More significantly, their role in core functions has deepened &mdash; with 45% penetration in drug discovery and development, 60% in regulatory affairs, 54% in medical affairs, and 50% in commercial operations.
This shift underlines India&rsquo;s transition from a support hub to a strategic center powering end-to-end innovation and operations for the industry.
&ldquo;This isn&rsquo;t about cost arbitrage anymore; it&rsquo;s about India becoming indispensable to the global R&amp;amp;D pipeline. Lifesciences multinationals are embedding their most strategic, knowledge-intensive work here, making India the epicentre for life sciences innovation, compliance, and future growth,&rdquo; Sen said.
&mdash;IANS

India emerges as global life sciences GCC hub

23 of world’s top 50 life sciences firms set up GCCs in India, says report

India Emerges As Life Sciences GCC Innovation Hub

23 of world’s top 50 life sciences firms set up GCCs in India, says report

September 1, 2025 | 17:11 IST