According to Mr Utkarsh Palnitkar, managing director, Pluripotent Capital, and executive director, Centrum Capital, the primary challenge is in finding enterprises that can scale up in a reasonable period of time. "Valuation expectation of mature enterprises is another barrier to deal making. Finding viable exit routes is another problem. This is accentuated in the healthcare space, where individual units may show healthy profits and yet offer very limited exit options to investors given their individual size," he said.

The healthcare and life sciences industry is reckoned to be the engine of India's economic growth. "There is a lot of interest that appears to be building in the global investor community in the Indian healthcare and life sciences sectors, and there is going to be a significant amount of capital that will follow the companies that manage to solve the challenges and develop a unique proposition applicable in a global context. Therefore the potential for strong exits is high, be it through secondary sales or through acquisitions," said Mr Raguraman.

"ChrysCapital that made two investments in less than 12 months believes in the Indian life sciences story and will continue to make investments," concluded Mr Sanjiv Kaul, managing director, ChrysCapital Advisors.