Novo Nordisk launches weight loss drug Wegovy in India

Danish pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk, best known for its anti-diabetes drug Ozempic, has launched its weight-loss drug Wegovy in India, just months after US-based Eli Lilly introduced its rival obesity treatment, Mounjaro, in the country.

The once-a-week injection will be available in pharmacies by the end of the month, Novo Nordisk said.

The injectable will come in a pen device in five doses—0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 1.7 mg, and a maintenance dose of 2.4 mg.

Monthly pricing ranges from ₹17,345 for the lower doses to ₹26,015 for the highest dose (about $201–$302).

For comparison, Mounjaro, Eli Lilly’s weight-loss and diabetes drug, is priced at ₹3,500 ($41) per injection for the 2.5 mg dose and ₹4,375 ($51) per injection for the 5 mg dose.

A month’s treatment with the 2.5 mg dose reportedly costs about ₹14,000 ($162).

Wegovy contains semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist miming a naturally occurring gut hormone, signaling the brain to feel full.

This mechanism helps reduce appetite and can lead to an average weight loss of about 15% after 68 weeks of treatment.

“One in three patients achieve 20% weight loss (with higher dose of Wegovy),” Novo Nordisk India managing director Vikrant Shrotriya said, adding the company had conducted late-stage trials of injectable semaglutide on 3,500 individuals in India.

Wegovy, which is the brand name for semaglutide, helped people lose about 15% of body weight when compared with about 23% by Mounjaro, along with a healthy diet and exercise.

The launch comes just ahead of India’s March 2026 expiry of the semaglutide patent.

Several Indian pharmaceutical companies are preparing to launch generic versions of the drug, which are expected to reduce costs significantly.

Wegovy is approved in India for chronic weight management and to reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.

Sales of Wegovy rival Mounjaro, which launched in India in March, jumped 60% between April and May, Reuters reported, citing unidentified industry experts.

About 24% of women and nearly 23% of men aged 15 to 49 were either overweight or obese, a government survey conducted between 2019 and 2021 showed, up from 20.6% of women and 19% of men in 2015-16.

Wegovy’s launch in the country comes a month after Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen was ousted as CEO over concerns the firm was losing its first-mover advantage in India. Novo is yet to name a replacement for Jorgensen.