BioAsia 2017 being hosted as one of the biggest platforms for national and international biotech and life sciences firms at Hyderabad , is likely to set new benchmarks for the future growth of the sector. This year, the 14 edition, is expected to focus on innovations in various sectors relating to the field. As part of this, the organizers have shaped the event with simultaneous conferences where speakers and leading scientists from across the world will be converging and discussing issues concerning the field.
Shakti Nagappan, CEO of BioAsia, sharing his perspectives with Amguth Raju, says he is quite hopeful that this event will be a memorable one and will be a big success with all the stake holders benefiting from it.
How big will be BioAsia 2017? What is the theme for the event and how different is it going to be compared to the previous editions?
BioAsia has shaped up really well and the response has been overwhelming. We are confident that that this edition of BioAsia will set new benchmarks for future. With active support from the industry leaders and the government, BioAsia has come to represent the flagship event of the life sciences sector. 2017 event, which will be 14th edition of BioAsia, will focus on the theme “Power of the Past, Force of the Future” to build on the significant achievements of the past in the life sciences sector to propel future growth and create breakthroughs in providing access to quality healthcare products to billions of people around the world. Under the leadership of the Minister for Industries Government of Telangana, KT Rama Rao, the 2017 event will not just be bigger and better in terms of number of participants and scale, but will also enable more meaningful dialogue between the stakeholders.
Could you give us a brief on general perspective of overall biotechnology industry in India and how BioAsia 2017 summit will help it grow further?
Life sciences today face multiple challenges in the form of drying research pipeline, escalating cost of drug development and increasing pressures on cost containment. With accessibility and availability of quality medicines being a priority for any economy, it is imperative that all stakeholders in the life sciences domain collaborate to create and ecosystem that encourages innovation while factoring in the needs of the larger population. It is important to consider a business model where the patient is placed at the centre of the business decisions as opposed to the end. Going forward, the distance between the patient and the life sciences company is likely to shorten. There is also evidence that life sciences companies are beginning to challenge existing business models and respond to the changes to the healthcare ecosystem, which is demanding a greater focus on improving patient health outcomes. But, further change is needed if businesses are going to succeed in an increasingly challenging environment. Under this backdrop, BioAsia 2017 will bring together the global stakeholders from across spectrum to deliberate on new opportunities and enabling cross pollination of ideas.
How do you view the mood of the biotech investors in India and the make in India rhetoric to boost manufacturing segment in the country?
With high quality low cost talent pool, rapidly growing economy and also, its huge domestic market, India indeed holds high promise of the life sciences sector. India has moved up 15 places in the global innovation index, which is a welcome sign and reports suggest that the country fares really high on the investor confidence as well. Perhaps, improvements in areas like time- bound regulatory clearances, IPRs, ease of doing business, taxation framework etc. can add further impetus to the life sciences manufacturing.
Could you please give us a glimpse on the prospects of biotech companies in Telangana?
Telangana holds dominant position in the life sciences sector with over 800 companies with a combined value to about US$ 50 billion. The state is home to the India’s largest and first systematically planned life sciences cluster – the Genome Valley and also contributes to about 30 per cent of the pharmaceutical production of the country. The state will be home to the country’s largest animal resource and testing facility being set up by the Government of India in partnership with Telangana Government, and will also have a centre for excellence in bulk drugs. With a patient: bed ratio of 875 compared to 1250, Hyderabad has one of the best healthcare infrastructure in the country. The state has also allocated about US$ 900 million for healthcare, which is one of the largest spends by the state governments. The Chief Minister of Telangana had also announced setting up a super-specialty hospital in each district with an investment of about US$ 16.58 billion.
With continued commitment to the sector, ‘Hyderabad Pharma City’ is being developed in an area of 14,000 acres, which will be the largest and first of its kind, smart ecosystem creating a new international benchmark for sustainable industrial cities. Also, a first of its kind park for medical devices & electronics is being developed with focus on medical innovations, R&D and manufacturing. Overall ecosystem for the life sciences sector coupled with the government’s unmatched commitment to enabling ease, quality and cost of doing business, make Telangana the most attractive and unmatchable destination for the life sciences companies.
How many exhibitors, participants and visitors are expected at BioAsia 2017 and what best they can expect from this year’s edition?
BioAsia 2017 promises to one of the biggest gathering given the participation of the most powerful leaders including the likes of Dr. Paul Stoffels, Worldwide Chairman of Pharmaceuticals and Chief Scientific Officer – Johnson & Johnson, Vasanth Narasimhan, Global Head of Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer for Novartis, Dr. Patrick Vallance, President, Global R&D – GSK, among several others. With a number of developments globally on cost containment of drugs and discussions around pricing policies, the deliberations at BioAsia will be centred on doing more with less on new drug development and disrupting healthcare overall.
What is the kind of participation you are expecting in this edition of BioAsia and the outcome of previous editions?
Senior leaders from over 50 countries and representing about 500 organizations will participate in the event. Over the course of 13 years, the convention has successfully organized over 12,000 partnering meetings, released over 20 knowledge reports and brought together stakeholders from over 92 countries. We are anticipating over 1000 partnering meetings this year as well.
Please give us a brief on the major programmes like seminars, presentations and other meetings that may take place at BioAsia 2017?
The comprehensive 3-day agenda will touch upon many areas ranging from innovation and R&D, manufacturing, digital healthcare, diagnostics, hospital infections & anti-microbial resistance etc. While the Innovation Conference will converge some of the world’s foremost Innovation thinkers and leaders to provide insights on structured approach to innovation and how companies can transform their thinking to identify new avenues for success, the Manufacturing Conference will bring together key stakeholders from the life sciences sector to explore how the manufacturing industry in pharma, biotech and medtech can help propel India’s growth to the next level. Automation in Diagnostics conference will have PoC users, regulators, diagnostic companies and suppliers discussing the future of rapid testing, automation challenges, quality control, legislation, diagnostics, and the future of PoCT going forward, and the Digital Health and Healthcare IT conference will deliberate and exchange ideas for India’s digital future.