Recent report of RNCOS projects a huge growth for clinical trial outsourcing business in India. Their new report titled 'Booming clinical trials market in India' is very optimistic about India to emerge as the dominant destination in coming years.

According to our analysis, India is one of the most economical destinations for conducting global clinical trials. Companies can save a substantial amount in India on both staff and utilities. For instance, the salary of a clinical research associate is only 13% of that in the US and 17% and 19% as that in the UK and Germany respectively. Similarly, the cost of a biostatistician in India is only 15%, 18% and 17% as that in the US, UK and Germany respectively. Companies also save substantially on utilities and land while setting up their operations in India.

India presently occupies a very small pie of the global opportunity. The total number of clinical trials in India stood at 221 in 2007, which equates to less than 2% of the global clinical trials. With all major pharmaceutical/biotech companies and CROs establishing their presence in India, the number of clinical trials in the country is expected to grow several folds in the next five years. The country is projected to conduct nearly 5% of the global clinical trials by 2012.