New Delhi, Jan. 2 -- The growing popularity of obesity drugs is expected to spur Indian pharma companies to sign licensing partnerships and distribution deals as they eye the lucrative segment. Indian companies started signing big-ticket deals with innovators for novel GLP-1s, as well as generic versions, last year. This trend is likely to continue this year as the market opens up with the expiry of semaglutide's patent, according to experts.

Given the complex regulatory pathway and manufacturing required for a GLP-1 pen, which involves manufacturing the compound, the pen and the fill-finish (filling the pen with the formulated drug), analysts said companies may tie up with others to bolster their supply chain and grab a larger share of ...