3 minutes of readingUpdated: Feb 1, 2026 06:58 pm IST
When Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced tax exemption on 17 life-saving cancer drugs, the medical fraternity welcomed the move.
Dr. Ashish Joshi, director, co-founder and medical oncologist, MOC Cancer Care and Research Center, said the budget brings tangible relief to cancer patients.
The exemption of basic customs duties for 17 critical cancer drugs, along with the inclusion of seven additional rare diseases in exemption from import duties for personal medical usewill directly reduce treatment costs for many patients who rely on imported therapies.
With India recording over 14 lakh new cancer cases annually and cancer being among the country’s top health burdens, this cost relief is an important step towards reducing financial barriers to essential treatment.
Projections suggest that cancer incidence in India continues to rise and could reach around 2 million cases by 2040, underscoring the urgency of scaling up care and innovation.
Shirin Wadia, CEO of KEM Hospital, Pune said the announcement of duty cuts on 17 cancer-related drugs will provide relief to patients who rely on imported medicines and make life-saving treatments more affordable.
“One of the highlights of this budget for the healthcare sector has been announced of states supporting the creation of five medical centers that will give a big boost to medical tourism in India The mention of geriatric care in the Union Budget “It is important and the fact that 1.5 lakh multi-skilled caregivers will be created who combine caregiving and allied skills is a much-needed step,” Wadia said.
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Dr Divij Mane, Director, Noble Hospitals and Noble Research Centre, also added that this initiative will generate a wide range of employment opportunities, from doctors and nurses to support staff and service providers,” Dr Mane said.
Dr Simon Grant, physician and administrator at Ruby Hall Clinic, said mental health services in western India require urgent attention and the expansion of NIMHANS 2.0 can help fill this gap. “Emergency and trauma care at district hospitals for vulnerable populations will also be strengthened. While customs duties are proposed for 17 life-saving medicines, another seven rare diseases will be exempted for personal imports of medicines and specialized nutrition,” he added.
“Primary health care is neglected”
Primary healthcare and public health infrastructure have been completely neglected in the Union Budget 2026-27, said Dr Ravi Wankhedkar, former national president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA).
“The budget is very disappointing and directionless for the healthcare sector. There is nothing special or transformative for healthcare in this budget,” Dr Wankhedkar said.
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The former IMA president said that promoting medical tourism will not benefit the common man. “Instead, it will greatly help the private corporate hospital sector,” he said, adding that there was no incentive to boost manufacturing of medical devices in India, which he pointed out was a major missed opportunity under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.