The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) inaugurated its flagship annual healthcare conference — FICCI HEAL 2025 — today at Federation House, New Delhi. Marking 25 years of the FICCI Health Services Committee, this year’s theme, “CARE@25: Defining Moments in Healthcare,” celebrates India’s healthcare transformation journey and charts the course toward Viksit Bharat 2047.
The two-day conference brought together more than 400 delegates and over 80 speakers, including top policymakers, healthcare leaders, innovators, and international experts.
The inaugural day, themed “CARE@25 – Defining Moments in Healthcare,” opened with a keynote address by Mr. Varun Khanna, Chair, FICCI HEAL 2025; Co-Chair, FICCI Health Services Committee; and Group Managing Director, Quality Care India Limited (CARE, KIMS & Evercare).
Mr. Khanna welcomed the audience and introduced the core themes of the conference — access, affordability, and quality — reflecting on the defining changes in India’s healthcare over the past 25 years. He presented statistics underscoring the private sector’s significant role, noting that nearly 80% of hospital beds and 70% of healthcare services are now provided by private players — a sharp contrast to previous decades.
He recalled a time when private healthcare and specialized treatments such as transplants were limited to a few metro cities, often accompanied by affordability challenges and long waiting periods, and highlighted how today’s landscape demonstrates vastly improved accessibility across the country.
Mr. Khanna specifically acknowledged Dr. Prathap C. Reddy for his four decades of pioneering leadership and wisdom that have profoundly shaped India’s healthcare systems. Drawing inspiration from the book “Love and Profit,” he emphasized that while data, facts, and information are important, it is “pure-play wisdom” that will guide India’s healthcare evolution over the next 25 years.
He also celebrated India’s greatest strength — its vast and skilled medical workforce, including more than 1.4 million doctors, calling it a foundation on which the nation’s healthcare future will continue to grow.
Speaking on the path forward, Mr. Khanna urged the healthcare sector to move beyond cost efficiency toward capability, accountability, and innovation.
“As we celebrate 25 years of India’s healthcare journey, it is important to acknowledge the visionaries who laid the foundation for access and affordability. Yet, the next 25 years will bring challenges we cannot fully predict — and preparing for that future will require imagination, innovation, and integrity. India has shown the world how to deliver healthcare with remarkable efficiency and frugality, but the future will demand much more than affordability,” said Mr. Varun Khanna.
He added, “While we have demonstrated the ability to deliver quality care at scale and at an affordable cost, the time has come to redefine our priorities. We must rebuild trust between patients and providers, ensure every claim of quality is backed by measurable outcomes, and bring greater transparency through digital enablement. The next phase of leadership in Indian healthcare will be shaped not by frugality alone, but by accountability, data-driven excellence, and human-centered care.”
Dr. Harsh Mahajan, Chair, FICCI Health Services Committee and Founder & Chairman, Mahajan Imaging & Labs, said, “As we celebrate 25 years of FICCI’s healthcare journey, our collective focus is on driving accountable, accessible, and innovative care models that shape a healthier India.”
The plenary also brought together healthcare icons Dr. Prathap C. Reddy (Apollo Hospitals), Dr. Naresh Trehan (Medanta), Dr. Arvind Lal (Dr Lal PathLabs), Dr. Azad Moopen (Aster DM Healthcare), Dr. M. I. Sahadulla (KIMS Healthcare), Prof. (Dr.) S. K. Sarin (ILBS), Dr Sangita Reddy (Apollo Hospitals), Dr (Prof) D S Rana(Sir Ganga Ram Hospital), Mr Dilip Jose (Manipal Hospitals), Mr Abhay Soi (Max Healthcare), Dr Sanjeev Singh, (AIMSRC), Dr Girdhar Gyani, (Director General – AHPI), Mr Gautam Khanna (P D Hinduja Hospital & MRC), Dr Upasana Arora, (Yashoda Super Speciality Hospitals), Dr Raajiv Singhal (Marengo Asia Hospitals), Dr Dharminder Nagar (Paras Health), Ms Alisha Moopen (Aster DM Healthcare), and Dr Shuchin Bajaj (Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services), who shared their insights on India’s evolving healthcare landscape and the leadership imperative for the next two decades.
Subsequent sessions, “The Torchbearers – Powerhouse of the Present” and “The Visionaries of Tomorrow – Pioneering New Frontiers in Healthcare,” explored the balance between access, innovation, and equity.
The day also featured deep-dive discussions on accountable care, primary healthcare transformation, and active and healthy ageing, along with the unveiling of FICCI’s latest knowledge papers.
Day 1 of FICCI HEAL 2025 not only celebrated the legacy of India’s healthcare pioneers but also underscored the collective resolve to shape a more accountable, technology-driven, and patient-centric future.
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