Novartis' big India bet with global R&D hub

Novartis is deepening its presence in India, positioning the country as one of its most important global centres for biomedical research and drug development outside its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.India is among the few markets where the Swiss drugmaker has established Biomedical Research alongside a full-spectrum development and operations footprint.The company, which operates the largest pharma GCC in India, has ramped up its workforce to strengthen early-stage research over the last one year to over 9,000 employees, which is about 11% of its global workforce, said a top company official.India-based teams now contribute to nearly every Novartis molecule that reaches late-stage development, spanning clinical operations, biostatistics, regulatory affairs and advanced analytics. The company’s expanding India hub in Hyderabad and Mumbai underscores a shift beyond cost arbitrage to high-value, science- and data-led innovation.The Novartis Corporate Center (NOCC) in Hyderabad has evolved since the company became one of the first multinational pharmaceutical firms to set up a global capability centre (GCC) in India over two decades ago. What began as a support hub has grown into Novartis’s largest global corporate centre, housing Biomedical Research, Drug Development, Finance and HR, Commercial (US and International), Strategy and Growth, Data, Digital and Technology, Manufacturing and Supply Operations, and other corporate functions.“NOCC Hyderabad is no longer about simply cost efficiency – it is where Novartis integrates science, digital, finance, technology platforms, and global services to drive transformation,” said Dr. Sadhna Joglekar, Senior Vice President and Head, Development India Hub, Novartis. With nearly 9,000 associates, the centre represents all business units and global functions, effectively making it a microcosm of the company’s worldwide operations. Around 2,800 employees work in Development across Hyderabad and Mumbai, alongside large teams in operations, commercial analytics and finance.India is now deeply embedded in Novartis’s global drug development model. Rather than running India-only programmes, the company integrates Indian teams across global assets, contributing to chemistry, analytics, biostatistics, data science and clinical operations. According to Dr. Joglekar, nearly every molecule that reaches late-stage development at Novartis has some contribution from India, whether through technical development at Genome Valley, global clinical trial support or regulatory documentation.Several high-profile medicines illustrate this role. India-based teams have supported clinical development, biostatistics, data management and regulatory documentation for inclisiran, the company’s siRNA therapy for lowering LDL cholesterol. Scientists in Genome Valley contribute to radioligand therapy precursors and analytical testing for lutetium-177 vipivotide tetraxetan, a treatment for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. India has also supported clinical operations and biostatistics for remibrutinib, recently approved in the US for chronic spontaneous urticaria.The rationale for building a large India GCC has also shifted over time. A decade ago, Novartis was drawn by Hyderabad’s scientific talent and the emerging Genome Valley ecosystem. Today, the strategic logic is broader. India combines deep scientific expertise with advanced digital, data and AI capabilities, enabling Novartis to handle complex, high-value work across the entire development pipeline. The hub now supports cutting-edge platforms including radioligand therapy, xRNA, and cell and gene therapies, alongside advanced analytics, AI-driven protocol design and digital and hybrid trials.“What began as a strong scientific and technical rationale has evolved into a much more strategic one: India is now an integrated part of Novartis’s global development of innovative medicines and a critical contributor to how we accelerate the molecule-to-medicine journey for patients worldwide,” said Joglekar.She said that cost arbitrage is no longer the primary lens for India. “India is critical because it offers a combination of scale, capability and ecosystem advantages that are hard to replicate elsewhere,” she added.“India is not about doing work cheaper. It is about doing more complex, higher-value work that underpins Novartis’ strategy across our four priority therapeutic areas: Cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CRM), Oncology, Immunology and Neuroscience, leveraging five cutting-edge technology platforms: Chemistry, Biotherapeutics, Cell and Gene Therapy, Radioligand Therapy and xRNA,” said Joglekar.A Novartis spokesperson said the company’s commitment to India continues to strengthen through the expanding footprint of Novartis Healthcare Private Limited (NHPL), even as Novartis AG conducts a strategic review of its stake in the listed Novartis India Limited (NIL). “Today, the Novartis Corporate Center in Hyderabad is one of the important and largest of the 6 centers in the global organization, supporting our purpose of reimagining medicine,” the spokesperson said, adding that the GCC’s annual operating cost in India is around $400 million. The spokesperson also clarified that the GCC remains unaffected by the strategic review of NIL.