India, Feb. 1 -- Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced a full customs duty exemption for 36 life-saving medicines for cancer and rare and chronic diseases. Six other drugs will have a concessional customs duty of 5% as part of efforts to increase accessibility to expensive advanced medicines for a larger section of patients.

"To provide relief to patients, particularly those suffering from cancer, rare diseases, and other severe chronic diseases, I propose to add 36 lifesaving drugs and medicines to the list of medicines fully exempted from Basic Customs Duty... I also propose to add six lifesaving medicines to the list attracting concessional customs duty of 5%," she in her budget speech.

The exempted drugs in...