Biotechnology in India

The Indian biotechnology industry is on the verge of entering a new era, where it can provide significant economic growth and development to the people of India and around the world. Currently, biopharmaceutical sector accounts for the largest share of the biotech industry at 62% in total revenues, followed by bio-services (18%), bio-agriculture (15%), bio-industrial (4%) and bioinformatics and Systems Biology (1%).

On the other hand, molecular biology of human genetic disorders, brain research, plant genome research, development, validation and commercialization of diagnostic kits and vaccines for communicable diseases, food biotechnology, biodiversity conservation and bio prospecting, setting up of micro propagation parks and biotechnology based development for SC/ST, rural areas, women and for different States.

Bio-technology in india: Facts

  • India is among the top 12 biotech destinations in the world and ranks third in the Asia Pacific.
  • India has the second highest number of United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) approved plants.No.1 producer of Hepatitis B vaccine recombinant. Indian biotech industry shall touch USD 100 billion by 2025.
  • India is amongst the top 12 biotech destinations in the world and ranks third in the Asia Pacific region. India has adopted the product patent regime in 2005.
  • India is the world’s leading supplier of affordable vaccines and producer of recombinant Hepatitis B vaccine.
  • India is the fastest growing major economies with GDP growth rate of above 7%.
  • India has the potential to become a major producer of transgenic rice and several genetically modified (GM) or engineered vegetables.
  • 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is allowed under the automatic route for Greenfield pharma.
  • 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is allowed under the government route for Brownfield pharma; up to 74% FDI is under automatic route and beyond 74% is under government approval route.
  • FDI up to 100% is allowed under the automatic route for the manufacturing of medical devices.
  • To attract investments in Industrial parks, 100% FDI is allowed through automatic route to new and existing parks.

Issues and Challenges

Indian Biotech sector has grown about 20% CAGR in the period from 2005 to 2015. If the industry has to reach its ambitious target of USD 100 billion by 2025, it needs to embark on a higher growth of 30% CAGR during the next ten years.

Challenges that need to be addressed in pursuit of this growth rate include:

  • Need to boost demand for biotechnology products
  • Reforming the Regulatory system
  • Improving the ‘Ease of Doing’ business in India
  • Providing the right policy environment including fiscal and tax incentives to boost R&D and manufacturing
  • Providing the right infrastructure for companies
  • Improving the access to biotech companies
  • Skill development for biotechnology research
  • Enabling Indian companies to acquire world class manufacturing quality

Biotechnology Park Incubators

  • Biotechnology parks are established to facilitate product advancement and innovation through the development of biotechnology industrial cluster and to produce biotechnologists and entrepreneurs who have strong foundation in research and innovation. With large number of multinational and Bio-Pharma companies initiating their R&D and manufacturing operations in India, the demand of biotech incubators has increased.
  • Biotech Consortium India Limited (BCIL) has been actively involved in preparing the detailed project reports (DPRs) for setting up of biotechnology parks in the country.
  • Following Biotech Park and Incubation Centres have been supported and are fully operational:
    • Lucknow Biotechnology Park, Uttar Pradesh
    • Biotechnology Incubation Centre, Genome Valley, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh
    • Biotechnology Core Instrumentation Facility (BTCIF) at TIDCO Centre for Life Sciences (TICEL), Chennai
    • The Golden Jubilee Biotech Park for Women, Siruseri, Kanchipuram District, Tamil Nadu
    • Guwahati Technology Incubation Centre (GBPIC) at Biotech Park, Assam
    • Bangalore Biotech Park, Karnataka
    • KRIBS BioNest, Kochi, Kerala (previously called KINFRA Biotech Park)
    • Punjab Biotechnology Incubator, Mohali, Punjab

Policies on Bio-technology

  • The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, announced the First National Biotechnology Development Strategy in September 2007.
  • The implementation of Biotech Strategy 2007 has provided an insight into the enormous opportunities.
  • In year 2015, DBT announced “The National Biotechnology Development Strategy-2015-2020” (Strategy-II), which was framed after a wider consultation with stakeholders.
  • Strategy-II would seamlessly build on the earlier Strategy to accelerate the pace of growth of biotechnology sector at par with global requirements.

Major initiatives of the National Biotechnology Development Strategy 2015-2020:

  • Launch four major missions in healthcare, food and nutrition, clean energy and education.
  • Create a technology development and translation network across India with global partnership, including 5 new clusters, 40 biotech incubators, 150 TTOs, and 20 bio-connect centres.
  • Ensure strategic and focused investment in building the human capital by setting up a Life Sciences and Biotechnology Education Council.

Biotechnology is one of the focus sectors in the “Make in India Initiative”. The strategic objectives of the initiative for Biotechnology are

  • Increase the number of jobs in manufacturing sector
  • Help enhance the access of drug
  • Reduce dependence on Imports especially medical devices segment
  • Drive Biotechnology exports from India

SAHAJ

  • The DBT made a public access of its Research Resources and Facilities supported across the country, by way of Scientific Infrastructure Access for Harnessing Academia University Research Joint Collaboration, (SAHAJ).
  • Under this programme, each DBT Autonomous Institute and DBT supported Infrastructure programme will make available its high end equipments and infrastructure to Research Institutes, Universities, Colleges and Start -ups /Entrepreneurs. Their website shall reflect Infrastructure facility usage forms with well defined usage charges terms and conditions.

Institutions

  • At present in India, there are six major agencies responsible for financing and supporting research in the realm of biotechnology apart from other sciences. They are:
    • Department of Science and Technology (DST)
    • Department of Biotechnology (DBT)
    • Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
    • Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
    • Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR)
    • University Grants Commission (UGC)
  • Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), DST, DBT and DSIR are part of Ministry of Science and Technology while ICMR is with Ministry of Health, ICAR with Ministry of Agriculture and UGC with Ministry of Human Resource and Development. DSIR is the funding agency for CSIR and both of them independently fund biotechnology related research programmes.

Other Biotech Institutions in India

Name of Institution

Area of Research

Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu

  • Natural product
  • Chemistry Pharmacology

International Centre for Genetic Engineering, New Delhi

  • Plant and animal Biology
  • Synthetic Biology
  • Biofuels

Adyar Cancer Institute, Chennai

  • Cancer Immunotherapy
  • Biomarker Discovery
  • Targeted Therapy

Center for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Hyderabad

  • Computational Biology
  • Bioinformatics
  • Epigenetic

Institute of Life Science

  • Immune Biology
  • Nanotechnology

Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad

  • Biomedicine and Biotechnology
  • Genomics Biochemistry
  • Biophysics
  • Bioinformatics

Center for Bio separation technology. Vellore

  • Protein Separation Technology
  • Proteomics
  • Monoclonal Antibody Production
  • Recombinant Antibody Fragments Production

Central Institute of Medicinal and aromatic Plants, Lucknow

  • Agronomy & Soil Sciences
  • Genetics and Plant Breeding
  • Plant Biology

Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow

  • Drug Discovery and Development
  • Reproductive Health Safety and Clinical Development

Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow

  • Nanotherapeutics & Nanomaterials Toxicology
  • Environmental Toxicology
  • Regulatory Toxicology
  • Health Risk Assessment

Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, New Delhi

  • Genomics and Molecular Medicines
  • Energy and Environmental Biotechnology

National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, Mumbai

  • Stem cell Biology and Transgenesis

National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad

  • Risk analysis of Mycotoxins
  • Safety assessment of GM foods and development of analytical methods and protocols for safety

National Center for Biological Science, Bengaluru

  • Biochemistry
  • Biophysics &Bioinformatics
  • Genetics &Development
  • Cellular Organisation&Signalling
  • Theory And Modelling Of Biological Systems
  • The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is a department, under the Ministry of Science and Technology responsible for administrating development and commercialization in the field of modern biology and biotechnology in India. It was set up in 1986.
  • Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) is a not-for-profit Section 8, Schedule B, Public Sector Enterprise, set up by Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India as an Interface Agency to strengthen and empower the emerging Biotech enterprise to undertake strategic research and innovation, addressing nationally relevant product development needs.

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