India must scale up non-animal methods for pre-clinical drug testing, say experts

Non-Animal Methods or NAMs, for pre-clinical testing of drugs, have been gaining ground across the world. With the development of new technologies and with countries updating their regulations on drug development and testing, there is now an opportunity for India, which houses a giant pharmaceutical sector, to not only benefit from this trend but also make significant contributions.

This was highlighted by experts during a webinar held on Thursday , February 5, 2026, to mark the launch of a report, ‘Landscape Analysis on Alternatives to Animal Testing for Drug Development in India’, jointly brought out by Humane World for Animals India, DBT-InSTEM, Animal Law and Policy Network and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.

The experts said that every year, millions of animals in India are sacrificed for pre-clinical testing. Shifting to NAMs was not only an opportunity to improve scientific relevance in the development process but also a means to reduce costs and accelerate timelines, while being ethically aligned with global best practices, they said.

The report states that NAM technologies — such as organoids, organ-on-chip systems, microphysiological platforms, and in silico modeling — address challenges in drug development, including high clinical attrition rates and poor species translatability, where only about 10% of Phase I candidates reach approval.

In order for this to materialise, the creation of infrastructure, enhancement of scientific capabilities, clear guidance from and formalising of frameworks by regulators are some of the factors that need to be addressed, they said.

‘Emerging adopter’

The report says that while India is an emerging adopter of NAM technologies, there is stakeholder uncertainty about whether these technologies would replace, complement, or reduce animal testing.

The experts called for the setting up of an industry-led consortium, the creation of a Central agency for NAMs, investments into local bio-banks, reagents, culture media and software, and establishment of hub-and-spoke models to support research and training.

The webinar participants include Alokparna Sengupta, managing director, Humane World for Animals India; Sarfaraz K. Niazi, adjunct professor, University of Illinois; Arvind Ramanathan, scientist, DBT BRiC — Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine; Deepak Sapra, CEO-API & Services, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.; and Satish Reddy, chairman, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.