India has cemented its position as the world’s hub for life sciences Global Capability Centres (GCCs), with 23 of the top 50 global life sciences companies setting up operations in the country — most of them in just the past five years. According to EY’s latest report, Reimagining Life Sciences Global Capability Centres (GCCs), these centres are no longer just support arms but are driving innovation, research, and end-to-end value creation across the pharmaceutical and healthcare spectrum.
From Cost Centres to Innovation Engines
The EY study highlights how life sciences GCCs in India have transformed from back-office enablers into strategic global engines. Today, they are managing mandates such as drug discovery, digital therapeutics, and real-world evidence (RWE) analytics, with artificial intelligence increasingly at the core of their work.
“Life sciences multinationals are embedding their most strategic, knowledge-intensive work here, making India the epicentre for life sciences innovation, compliance, and future growth,” said Arindam Sen, Partner and GCC Sector Lead – Technology, Media & Entertainment, and Telecommunications, EY India.
Sen added: “Our analysis highlights how India has rapidly evolved from a support base to the very centre 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 ~60%. But what truly stands out is the deepening role in core functions – from drug discovery and regulatory affairs to medical and commercial operations. This isn’t about cost arbitrage anymore, it’s about India becoming indispensable to the global R&D pipeline.”
Enabling and Core Functions: Sharp Penetration Gains
The report shows India’s GCCs now handle a majority of enabling functions for global life sciences firms — 70% of finance, 75% of HR, 62% of supply chain, and 67% of IT.
Equally striking is their role in core operations: 45% penetration in drug discovery and development, 60% in regulatory affairs, 54% in medical affairs, and 50% in commercial operations. This marks a decisive shift from India being a support hub to becoming a strategic driver of global pharmaceutical innovation.
Why India Is Leading the GCC Revolution
EY attributes India’s rise as the backbone of life sciences GCCs to a unique convergence of policy, talent, ecosystem, and infrastructure:
Policy support: Central and state governments, including Karnataka and Telangana, have positioned GCCs as engines of digital exports and job creation. Incentives range from capital expenditure subsidies to rental reimbursements and skilling support.
Talent advantage: With 2.7 million professionals in the life sciences industry, an annual pipeline of 2 million STEM graduates, and over 110,000 medical graduates, India offers unmatched access to scientific and digital talent.
Ecosystem maturity: A robust mix of contract research organizations (CROs), top-tier universities, more than 100 unicorns, and a thriving startup ecosystem creates fertile ground for innovation.
Infrastructure edge: Grade-A office spaces in metros and emerging Tier-II and Tier-III cities make scalable expansion cost-efficient.
Future Outlook: Twin Engines of Global Innovation
Looking ahead, EY says leading life sciences GCCs are evolving into “twins” of their global headquarters — co-owning innovation, driving outcomes, and actively engaging with the wider ecosystem.
The report identifies three imperatives that will shape the next phase:
- Future capabilities: Resilience, risk mitigation, and boundary-pushing innovation.
- Operating model evolution: Moving from transactional delivery to outcome-based partnerships.
- Talent imperative: Building agile, AI-ready, multi-disciplinary teams skilled in areas like bioinformatics and digital health.
With this accelerated transformation, India is no longer just supporting the global life sciences industry — it is increasingly at its very heart.
