The 13th edition of the Bangalore India Bio 2013 began on a sound note with the inking of two key memorandum of understanding with the Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services (KBITS), Scottish Development International and the Georgia Department of Economic Development.
There has been extensive interest to collaborate with India, going by the expertise and the international majors have a sound technical knowhow. Therefore the pact will help the two countries of Scotland and Georgia in USA to transform the market place with novel technologies and solutions in the healthcare space. These efforts would help the biotech industry in India to sustain the 25 per cent annual growth rate.
Lauding the interest evinced by the Scotland and Georgia in particular and in addition to the presence of 20 country delegates, at the Bangalore India Bio 2013, Karantaka chief minister Jagadish Shivappa Shettar who inaugurated the event said that the biotech sector in Karnataka State enjoyed a comfortable position, both in terms of growth and revenues. About 26 per cent of the biotech revenues of the country, particularly in terms of exports, are generated by the biotech Industry in Karnataka.
The State is home to about 52 per cent of the core Biotech companies in the country. Out of the top 10 Biotech Companies in India, five are located in Bangalore. The ‘IT Capital of India’ has truly emerged as the ‘Science Capital of India’, thanks particularly to the Biotech sector.
In 2001, it was Karnataka government which took efforts to unveil a proactive Biotech Policy which was revised and announced ‘Millennium Biotech Policy version 2’ in December 2009. The revised Policy has received encouraging response from the industry. Besides the fiscal incentives and concessions offered, the revised Policy aims at building up necessary infrastructure in terms of state-of-the-art Biotech Parks and capacity building, stated the Karnataka Chief Minister.
A significant initiative of the revised Policy is to address the talent shortage problem faced by the industry by setting up Biotechnology Finishing Schools and the 12 schools sanctioned by the State Government across the State are doing well with feedback from both the industry and the academia is encouraging. The BT Finishing School model of the State Government has been appreciated by Government of India, which has sanctioned fellowship of Rs.5000 per student per month, and the scheme is valid for three years initially. We now look forward to similar support of Department of Biotechnology, said the Karnataka chief minister.
In her address as the chairperson Vision Group on Biotechnology, government of Karnataka and as the CMD Biocon Limited, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, said, “Indian biotech comes of age and it is gratifying that it is now a $7.5 billion sector. The sector is set to touch $100 billion by 2025. Specifically with reference to bio-pharma, we see the growth contributors would be vaccines as one third of the global children are inoculated with vaccines from India. Biosimilars and biologicals are proving to be the hub of manufacture from the emerging markets and India will take a lead in the same.
SV Ranganath, chief secretary, Government of Karnataka said that the state was in the process of creating an environment for research. Already Bengaluru was home to several leading research centres of excellence and institutes. In this regard, extensive land has been allocated to set up a Science City, Chitradurga where the DRDO and IISc are also setting up their second campuses. Therefore every effort is being made to promote and sustain biotechnology industry in the state.
The three-day event is witnessing 800 delegates, including from foreign countries.