NIPER Raebareli, AstraZeneca Tie Up for 25 Trial Sites

NIPER Raebareli, the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research at Raebareli, and AstraZeneca India have joined hands to take clinical trial work out of the metros. The memorandum of understanding was signed in New Delhi on 14 October 2026 in the presence of Manoj Joshi, Secretary of the Department of Pharmaceuticals in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers. The aim is a trained workforce and inspection-ready sites in 25 emerging research geographies across the country.

What the partnership will do

• Adopt 25 clinical trial sites to begin with and assess what each is capable of.
• Provide targeted training and mentoring to the staff at those sites.
• Strengthen documentation and the processes around ethics, safety and trial feasibility.

Who brings what

The Department of Pharmaceuticals will give direction and endorsement so that the effort lines up with national priorities in clinical research. On that government-led base, AstraZeneca India is to contribute clinical development expertise, design and run the programme, bring in faculty from India and abroad, and carry the chosen sites through training, workshops, governance and site readiness.

The larger mission

The tie-up feeds Biopharma SHAKTI, the central government's flagship push to build a stronger biopharma ecosystem. One of that mission's stated goals is setting up 1,000 clinical trial sites around the country, so the 25 sites taken up here are a first instalment rather than the whole target.

What the officials said

Manoj Joshi said India has the talent and the expertise to take a larger place in global clinical trials, and that building capability outside the big metropolitan centres would widen the pool of skilled professionals and research-ready sites. Dr Shubhini Saraf, Director of NIPER Raebareli, said the Centre of Excellence would be a dedicated platform for structured training and certification in clinical research, and that pairing academic and industry expertise would create a model other regions and therapeutic areas could copy. Praveen Rao Akkinepally, Country President and Managing Director of AstraZeneca Pharma India Limited, said the collaboration is meant to expand trial participation and build a sustainable research ecosystem of high quality.

Scope for growth

The initiative has been designed as a scalable national model. Once the proof-of-concept stage is cleared, it can be widened to more geographies and to therapeutic areas beyond oncology, which is where the work begins.