India Backs 210 Nanomedicine Projects With ₹174 Crore as Precision Healthcare Push Expands
India is expanding its investment in nanomedicine as researchers explore technologies that could make future treatments more targeted, personalised and less damaging to healthy tissue.
The Department of Biotechnology is currently supporting 210 research and development projects in nanomedicine with financial assistance of ₹174 crore, Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said at the World Congress on Nanomedicine 2026 in New Delhi on Sunday.
The projects span areas including targeted drug delivery, cancer research, infectious diseases, vaccine delivery, medical imaging, regenerative medicine and nanotoxicology.
The announcement gives a clearer picture of how India is attempting to move nanotechnology from laboratory research toward practical healthcare applications.
What Is Nanomedicine?
Nanomedicine applies extremely small materials and structures to healthcare.
A nanometre is one-billionth of a metre, meaning scientists can design particles small enough to interact with cells, proteins and other biological structures at microscopic scales.
The goal is not simply to create smaller medicines.
Researchers hope nanoscale systems can help deliver drugs more precisely, improve diagnostic imaging, carry vaccines or genetic material and potentially reduce the amount of healthy tissue exposed to powerful treatments.
At the World Congress, Singh described nanomedicine as an important component of future precision and personalised healthcare.
₹174 Crore Supports 210 Research Projects
The government’s current nanomedicine portfolio covers a broad range of research.
According to details released around the Congress, funded areas include:
- Targeted drug delivery
- Cancer nanomedicine
- Infectious-disease applications
- Nucleic-acid and vaccine delivery
- Nano-diagnostics and medical imaging
- Regenerative medicine
- Wound healing
- Nanotoxicology
- Regulatory science
The diversity of these projects shows that India’s programme is not focused on one disease or one medical product.
Instead, nanotechnology is being investigated as a platform that could potentially support several areas of medicine.
Oral Insulin Is One Area Under Research
One of the research areas highlighted during the event involves oral insulin nanoparticles.
People who require insulin commonly receive it by injection because insulin is a protein that can be broken down in the digestive system before enough of it reaches the bloodstream.
Researchers have long explored whether specialised delivery systems could protect insulin as it passes through the digestive tract and improve absorption.
Nanotechnology may offer new approaches by packaging or carrying insulin in extremely small structures designed to survive part of that journey.
However, this is important:
The research mentioned at the Congress does not mean a new oral-insulin nanomedicine has been approved for routine patient use.
These are research and development efforts whose safety and effectiveness still have to be demonstrated through appropriate scientific and regulatory processes.
Researchers Are Also Exploring Cancer Nanotechnology
Cancer is another major area of nanomedicine research.
Traditional cancer treatments can sometimes affect healthy cells alongside tumour cells.
One objective of targeted nanomedicine is to deliver therapeutic material more selectively to cancerous tissue.
Indian research highlighted during the Congress includes targeted breast-cancer nanomedicine, precision nanoinjection and work involving nanoscale systems sometimes described as nanobots.
Again, these technologies should be understood as research areas rather than currently available replacements for established cancer treatments.
The scientific challenge is to prove that any nanoscale delivery system can reach the intended target reliably while remaining safe for the rest of the body.
Why Targeted Drug Delivery Matters
Consider a conventional medicine that circulates throughout the bloodstream after being taken.
Only part of that medicine may ultimately reach the tissue where it is needed.
Researchers are investigating nanoscale carriers that could potentially improve this process by transporting therapeutic molecules toward specific tissues or cells.
If successful in appropriate applications, this approach could potentially:
reduce unnecessary exposure of healthy tissue, improve drug concentration at the intended site and allow some medicines to be delivered in different ways.
But the benefits depend heavily on the individual technology and disease.
Nanomedicine is therefore a broad research field rather than a single treatment.
Nanotechnology Could Also Improve Diagnostics
Treatment is only one side of the technology.
Nanoscale materials can also interact with biological markers in ways that may improve medical detection and imaging.
Government-supported projects include nano-diagnostics and imaging technologies, according to information presented during the Congress.
Earlier and more precise detection can be important because many diseases are easier to manage when identified before they reach advanced stages.
Researchers are therefore exploring nanoscale tools both for delivering medicines and for detecting biological changes.
Vaccine and Genetic-Material Delivery Is Another Focus
Nanotechnology also has applications in transporting biological material.
India’s research portfolio includes projects involving nucleic-acid and vaccine delivery.
This area gained greater public visibility during the development of modern vaccine platforms, where delivery systems play a crucial role in protecting sensitive biological material until it reaches the appropriate cells.
Future systems could potentially be designed for different vaccines, therapeutic molecules or genetic technologies.
The underlying challenge remains consistent: safely transporting fragile biological material through the body to the location where it needs to act.
India Is Also Building Regulation Around Nanopharmaceuticals
Developing a medicine is not only a scientific challenge.
Authorities also need methods for determining whether a new product is safe, consistent and effective.
India has developed regulatory guidance for nanopharmaceuticals through work involving the Department of Biotechnology, Indian Council of Medical Research and Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, according to information presented at the event.
Nanomedicines can present different evaluation challenges from conventional drugs because the behaviour of nanoscale materials can depend on properties such as size, surface characteristics and how particles interact with cells.
That makes regulation particularly important as research moves closer to clinical applications.
More Than 2,000 Participants Gather in New Delhi
The World Congress on Nanomedicine 2026 is being held in New Delhi from September 27 to September 30.
The event is expected to bring together more than 2,000 scientists, researchers and other participants, according to information published ahead of the Congress by Indian diplomatic authorities.
Nobel laureate Roger D. Kornberg is serving as chairperson of the Congress.
The meeting provides researchers with a platform to discuss developments ranging from drug delivery and imaging to regenerative medicine and other nanoscale healthcare technologies.
Nanomedicine Is Part of a Wider Deep-Tech Shift
India’s nanomedicine push also fits into a broader expansion of India’s deep-tech ecosystem.
Research-heavy technologies often face a different development path from ordinary software startups.
A new medical technology may require years of laboratory research, animal studies, manufacturing development, clinical trials and regulatory evaluation before it can become a commercial product.
That means successful translation requires more than scientific discovery.
It also requires long-term funding, specialised infrastructure, industry partnerships and regulatory expertise.
Government programmes and biotechnology-focused funding mechanisms are increasingly being used to support this transition from research to commercial development.
The Biggest Challenge Is Moving From Lab Results to Patients
Nanomedicine can sound futuristic, particularly when terms such as cancer nanobots or precision nanoinjection are used.
But medical technologies face a much higher standard than simply demonstrating that something works in a laboratory.
Researchers must establish questions such as:
Can the material remain stable inside the body?
Does it reach the correct tissue?
How quickly is it removed?
Could it accumulate in organs?
Does it trigger an unwanted immune response?
Can it be manufactured consistently at large scale?
And, most importantly, does it improve patient outcomes safely?
These questions explain why nanotoxicology and regulatory science are themselves included among India’s funded research areas.
AI and Nanotechnology Are Tools, Not Replacements for Doctors
At the Congress, Singh also cautioned against allowing technologies such as artificial intelligence and nanotechnology to replace clinical judgement.
His position was that advanced technologies should support doctors rather than weaken the human and clinical aspects of medicine.
That distinction will become increasingly important as healthcare systems adopt more sophisticated diagnostic and treatment technologies.
A powerful tool can provide additional information or precision, but healthcare decisions still depend on clinical evidence, patient circumstances and qualified medical professionals.
What Happens Next?
The ₹174 crore supporting 210 projects demonstrates that India already has a substantial nanomedicine research pipeline.
The more important question is how many of those projects eventually progress through validation, clinical testing, regulation and commercial manufacturing.
Some may remain experimental.
Others could potentially become diagnostic platforms, drug-delivery technologies or new medical products.
That uncertainty is normal in scientific research.
What is clear is that India is building capabilities across several layers simultaneously—research, startups, infrastructure and regulation.
If those pieces successfully connect, nanomedicine could become one of the areas where India’s biotechnology research moves beyond academic laboratories into globally relevant healthcare technologies.
For now, the country’s 210-project portfolio and ₹174 crore commitment provide a measurable indication of how seriously the field is being pursued.