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Vizag’s Promised Pharmaceutical Institute Still Just a Dream as 2026 Looms

Visakhapatnam, December 8, 2025 – A promised branch of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, remains unrealized nearly a decade after its announcement in 2016. The ambitious project, envisioned to span 100 acres and cost ₹600 crore, was meant to compensate Andhra Pradesh for losing its NIPER branch in Hyderabad to Telangana.

The proposed NIPER-Visakhapatnam aimed to leverage the city’s position as a major pharmaceutical hub, home to over 200 manufacturing units, including industry giants like Dr. Reddy’s, Aurobindo Pharma, and Divis. Proponents believed NIPER would foster critical industry-academia collaborations, drive innovative research, and generate substantial employment opportunities.

Local leaders, including Visakhapatnam MP M. Sribharat, have repeatedly appealed to the Union government for action. In August, Sribharat urged Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda to review the project. However, sources indicate no significant progress has been made.

“It has been a decade since NIPER was announced in Visakhapatnam in 2016. But, there has been no progress so far. A new pharma park is coming up in Anakapalli district, and an NIPER will boost the entire ecosystem,” Said O. Naresh Kumar, Vizag Development Council vice-chairperson.

Andhra Pradesh currently ranks third in pharmaceutical exports nationwide, behind Gujarat and Telangana, with exports totaling ₹11,390 crore in 2023-24. Available land near Pharma City in Parawada, Anakapalli district, makes the area ideal for the establishment of NIPER. Frustration is growing that political inaction and a lack of initiative are preventing the region from fulfilling its potential in the pharmaceutical sector.

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