India is lagging behind the advanced countries in biotechnology. Our global share is less than 2 % in biotech. In spite of our best desires and ambition to catch up in biotechnology, we will be still left behind if we keep on depending on our own R&D contributions, whether in-house or in universities.
According to Dr B S Bajaj, Chairman, All-India Biotech Association (AIBA), Southern Chapter, the best way is to go in for strategic alliances, buy technologies and set up facilities in the country for the domestic market as well as exports. This route will be short and faster than the route of helping our own efforts. In an interview with PNV Nair of Chronicle Pharmabiz, Dr Bajaj said that the right way to attract foreign investment is to arrange for one-to-one meetings between the local entrepreneurs and the technology providers which is being done by AIBA. Following are excerpts from the interview:
What are the important developments in the biotech sector during the past one-year?
Several new companies have come up last year, taking the total number of biotech companies and institutions in the state to 77 and many are in pipeline. Some recent entrants are Bio Voice Knowledge Centre, Genotex International (India) Ltd, Gene Expression Training Research Institute of Bioinformatics (GETRIB), Helix Genomics Private Ltd, K
N Biotech, Maanya Biotech Ltd, Magene Life Sciences Private Ltd, Medgene Biotech Private Ltd, Pacific Hospitals Private Ltd, Silico Insights Biosciences Pvt Ltd, Siva Sivani's Centre for Bioinformatics and Bio-Pharmaceuticals Management (CBABM), and Southern Biofe Fuels Pvt Ltd.
The state government has created a 600-km Genome Valley around Hyderabad, as the biotech hub of India, launched the third phase of ICICI Knowledge Park at Thurkapally, cleared the process of setting up an Incubator at the Biotech Park in collaboration with Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), allotted 100 acres of land to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to set up a National Animal Resource Facility (animal house) for biomedical research at an investment of Rs 150-Rs 200 crore, got approval for the creation of an Institute of Life Sciences, set up a single window clearance for biotech industries by the state government and set up a Biotech Venture Capital, APIDC VCL, mobilising Rs 35 crore with an estimated target of Rs 150 crore.
What are the achievements in the field of biotechnology in the state so far?
The two Recombinant DNA products in the country have been produced by two biotech companies in Hyderabad, namely Shantha Biotechnics and Bharat Biotech International Ltd. The LV Prasad Eye Institute has made some breakthrough in stem cell research so as to give sight to the blind. The research at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has resulted in the discovery of new genes and also the cause for several diseases. This will lead to the discovery of drugs for several chronic diseases. Pharmaceutical companies like Dr Reddy's had developed several molecules for cancer, diabetes and infectious diseases and are under clinical trials. Most of the biotech companies came up during the last three or four years will require time to show results.
What are the problems being faced by the new units?
The most common problem is that of funding. Start-up companies have a lot of problems in managing funds. The climate of public issues is very much down and disappointing and, therefore, they hesitate to go public. Even though the state government has announced single window clearances, regulatory clearances from the Centre are delayed. The new Recombinant DNA products take a lot of time for clearance as they come under severe scrutiny, though justified. Some way has to found and they should be speeded up. Delay would mean more expenditure for the start-up companies who are already handicapped by shortage of funds.
What will be the fate of the biotech companies after 2005, when the new patent regime comes into force?
After 2005, the biotech companies will get fragmented into three segments. The companies which have their own R&D back-up will not have much problems. The established companies are preparing themselves to enter the regulatory markets with their own research and development of new drugs. Many units are in collaboration with foreign companies with buy-back arrangement. Such companies will not have the problems of funding and marketing.
The companies which do not have R&D back-up are mainly in the SME (small and medium enterprises) segment. They will depend on getting licences from foreign companies for outsourcing their products and concentrate mostly on generic drugs that are going off patents. Some of the blockbuster drugs will be available for them to manufacture for the domestic market as well as export.
The companies which neither have R&D nor foreign collaboration may have to close down under stiff international competition.
Why foreign companies are reluctant to invest in India, especially in the biotech sector?
Frankly speaking, foreign companies do not trust India. They are not sure whether their technology will be safeguarded in the country. The government of India is acting very slowly in framing the IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) regulations. However, the AP government has set up an IPR cell at the Biotech Park, which is helping the new companies to protect their IPR issues, including filing of patents.
Hyderabad is holding a number of international conferences on biotech. Your organisation, AIBA, has also organised a couple of meetings. What comes out of these conferences?
Most of the international conferences are a waste. Nobody takes them seriously, and naturally, they do not make any impact. Realising this drawback, AIBA, southern chapter, had organised a three-day Biotech
Invest-2003: Global Meet on Strategic Alliances and Business Opportunities, in Hyderabad from January 31 to February 2, 2003, with special focus on interactive meetings between the Indian entrepreneurs and the prospective foreign investors.
The conference was conducted in two parts, namely, International Conference on Investment opportunities in Biotechnology and International Interactive Meet for Alliances in Biotechnolgy. While the morning sessions were devoted to conferences and presentation of investment opportunities, the afternoons were devoted to face-to-face meetings between the local entrepreneurs (technology seekers) and the potential foreign investors (technology providers).
In all, 38 one-to-one meetings were arranged resulting in the signing of 8 MoUs with an investment potential of more than Rs 100 crore. Notable among the MoUs were those signed between Nova Tero Foundation, USA, and Genotex International (India), Hyderabad, envisaging transfer of technology for a Rs 50-crore biotech unit to come up at the Biotech Park in Hyderabad and the one between Seoul-based Best Korea and Indosystems International, Hyderabad, for the manufacture of critical equipment used by biotech industries. The other MoUs were between Biotechnology International, LLC (BTI), USA, and DRS Systems and Services, Hyderabad; CiventiChem, USA, and Otira Pharmaceuticals, Hyderabad; EFA Sciences, USA, and Shantha Biotechnics, Hyderabad; BTI, USA, and Bio Voice, Hyderabad, BTI, USA, and Sipra Labs, Hyderabad; and BIT, USA, and AIBA, New Delhi Three or four agreements are also in the pipeline.
At the Biotech Invest 2003, the following bio-tech projects and bio-tech products were also launched. They are: The announcement of ICMR chief about the setting up of an Animal House at the Biotech Park with an investment of Rs150-Rs200 crore. The state government offered 100 acres of land for the facility. Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences, Tirupati, announced the setting up of a stem cells research centre, primarily for cardiomyocites, a herbal product, Bronco-T, an anti-asthamatic preparation, was launched by Surya Pharmaceuticals, Varanasi, in collaboration with the University of Hyderabad, an R&D lab for drug discovery was launched by the US-based company, Genomik Design Pharmaceuticals, a bio-medical research centre was launched by Pacific Healthcare Holdings, Singapore, for research on stem cells, umbilical cord blood banking and a maternity-cum-neonatal hospital in Hyderabad, five acres of land was released at S P Biotech Park to KCP Biotech Ltd, Chennai, by the AP Chief Minister, and a Bio-suite (software suite for bioinformatics), developed by Tata Consultancy Services, was launched.
What is the role of AIBA in promoting biotech units in the country as a whole and AP in particular?
India is totally lagging behind the advanced countries in biotechnology. Our global share is less than 2 % in biotech. In spite of our best desires and ambition to catch up in biotechnology, we will be still left behind if we keep on depending on our own R&D contributions, whether in-house or in universities. Well, the best way is to go in for strategic alliances, buy technologies and set up facilities in the country for the domestic market as well as exports. This route will be faster than the route of helping our own efforts.
Keeping this in view, AIBA is concentrating on holding interactive meetings between foreign countries & institutions and Indian companies for transfer of technology and alliances. The Biotech Invest 2003 was a success, no doubt. We are now planning to have one-to-one interactive meetings between India and a specific country, rather than global meetings. In this context we are planning one meeting between India and Israel during this year, and with Germany and Australia, next year.