University of Sussex Social Technological Environmental Pathways Sustainable Centre (STEPS) views the future growth of biotechnology would evolve around inclusive innovation in science and technology, supported by a robust regulatory mechanism with a an efficient single window clearance system for speedy approvals. In the coming years, the state and central governments will need to support innovation to ensure sustainable growth of the biotechnology sector, said Dr Ian Scoones, co-director, STEPS Centre, University of Sussex, UK.
At an seminar on Biotech in Bangalore, organised by the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore Dr Scoones stated that the city known as the biotech capital of the country was pitched as a knowledge hub because of its innovation in research and manufacture driven by partnerships in the public and private sector.
In his address titled ‘Reflecting on Biotech and Bangalore’, he said that while the city had evolved into a biotech cluster, the industry’s progress in the coming years would be beyond transgenes and depend on inclusive innovation from science and technology. For this, the state and central government would need to create a regular funding mechanism to encourage innovation. “There is also need for both precaution and regulation to make a headway in biotech,” he added.
The transition of Bangalore from information technology to biotechnology has been driven by the support from the Karnataka government. From the formation of a dedicated Vision Group on biotechnology to focus on issues and the drafting of the Millennium Biotech policy together with the seed grants from the state government have led to establishment of start-ups and early stage innovations, pointed out Dr Scoones.
The state government has also created an infrastructure to share knowledge and resources among companies to ensure the knowledge flow between academia and the private sector. The research centres like the Indian Institute of Science and the National Centre for Biological Sciences, have helped promote academia and industry collaborations. The public research infrastructure has resulted in a strong scientific capacity, he said.
Delving on a national perspective, Dr Scoones stated that despite global acknowledgement, Indian biotechnology sector is yet to create a synergy between high level peer science and industry. This is because it is not making most of its existing capability.
More over the biotechnology sector is faced with the uncertainty of regulations which is preventing innovation and makes it fundamental for the Indian government to recast the current regulatory environment. There is also need for public trust and peer reviews to spur growth, said Dr Scoones.