The buzzword in Hyderabad today is Biotech. The city is placed in an enviable position of capturing the growing potential of biotechnology thanks to the high quality scientific infrastructure, the progressive policies of the state government, the strength of the pharma industry, the presence of worldclass R&D institutions and skilled manpower. And the city will soon overtake Bangalore as Number One in Biotechnology, says Dr B S Bajaj, Chairman of the All-India Biotech Association, Southern Chapter. There are more than 35 industrial units in and around Hyderabad producing or planning to produce both modern and conventional biotech products. The city takes pride in setting up the country's first Hepatitis Vaccine manufacturing facility based on rDNA technology by Shantha Biotechnics and later by another plant, Bharat Biotech International. Shantha Biotech repeated its performance recently by indigenously producing and marketing insulin, called Shantaferon. It shares almost one-third of the bulk drugs manufactured in the country with Dr Reddy's taking the lead. Hyderabad can really boast of being the Biotech City. P N V Nair of Pharmabiz.com speaks to Dr Bajaj. Excerpts of the interview:

What are the prospects and problems of biotechnology in India?

We were very late in realizing the potential of biotechnology for the benefit of mankind. World market for biotech products is more than $100 billion and this is expected to grow by $170 billion by the year 2005. India's BT market for both human and animal health care products is worth only $1.5 billion. It will be difficult to reach the international level unless concerted and planned efforts are made in this country.

States like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab are now setting up biotech parks to attract the industry by offering several incentives. The low cost of R&D (almost one-tenth of the cost in the West), low cost and minimum time on clinical trials, tax holidays and other incentives by governments, cheap scientific talent, skilled technical manpower at very low cost, established pharma units and the unique biodiversity of the country's population are some positive factors for the growth of the biotech industry in India.

Though there is a tremendous enthusiasm among the investors, the growth of the industry is hampered by the very high cost of imported technology and equipment, lack of clear-cut policy, lack of industrial approach by the national laboratories / universities, the short-term nature of venture capital and processing hurdles, hazy regulatory approval norms and interference by ignorant politicians. R&D without revenue generation will only result in loss.

What should be the area of focus in India?

Biotechnology is a multi-disciplinary subject and includes bio-pharma, bio-agriculture, bio-industry, bio-informatics and so on. All are essential and it is difficult to pinpoint a particular domain. With the sequencing of human genome, BT uses this genetic information to develop innovative drugs and vaccines for virtually all diseases. Biotechnology is expected to usher in a second green revolution in India through transgenic plants by improving yield, nutrition, pest / disease resistance and better shelf life. A combination of BT and IT is developing via genomics, resulting in an important field of Bioinformatics. In short the technology is now being used to produce high-yielding and environment-friendly microbial strains for industrial use, new drugs for dreaded diseases, single cell proteins to feed cattle, clean waste, transgenic crops, genomics, proteomics etc.

Do you think there is a lot of hype and nothing much is happening?

Well, it is a slow process. Research takes time, several years in fact. Several pharma companies, which were not doing well in their business, had set their eyes on biotechnology. But most of them have closed down. Several pharma companies are hit by competition and dumping of products from countries like China. The problem is that for the huge investment, the returns are slow and less unlike in the IT industry.

A lot of foreign companies are looking towards India and Hyderabad is reported to be their destination. But how many companies have really come till now?

In India there is no secrecy on research matters. Research scholars jump from one job to another and research secrets are leaked. This is dangerous. The CII and the Andhra Pradesh Technology Development and Promotion Centre, in association with the State government, have set up an Intellectual Property Rights Facilitation Cell at ICICI Knowledge Park to assist the industry and the MNCs intending to invest in biotech and pharma projects. The Cell could be the hub of IPR services for the entire southern region. The objective of the Cell was to impart training, provide information and patent-related advisory services and assist the units on legal issues. It will network with national and international technology institutes and legal firms for the purpose.

Hyderabad, no doubt, is doing very well in biotechnology. The Knowledge Park, the Biotech Park, the Genome Valley and other projects have given the city a cutting edge over other cities. Several foreign companies are in the process of setting up their units here.

What is the role All-India Biotech Association (AIBA) in promoting biotechnology?

AIBA is a non-profit professional society and is the only organization providing a common apex forum at the national level to represent the interest of all those who are engaged in biotech, like academia, research institutions, the scientific community and industry, so that biotechnology can progress much faster than the present rate of growth and more so in a planned direction.