Mamta Bhatia of Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune; N Krishnan of XLRI, Jamshedpur and Rahul Sheshgiri of MVJ Medical College and Research Hospital, Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences, Bengaluru won accolades at the recently concluded Novartis Biotechnology Leadership Camp (BioCamp) that took place in Hyderabad from July 17 to 20, 2016.

The four-day programme saw intense participation among 51 students vying to represent India at the International BioCamp being held at the Novartis Campus in Basel, Switzerland from August 28 to 31, 2016.

The inaugural address was delivered by Dr Ashfaq Hasan, head, department of pulmonary medicine, Owaisi Hospital & Research Centre who gave an inspiring talk on chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder and highlighted the many challenges the disease brings with it. Other speakers included Ganesh Balakrishnan, partner, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP, Prof Deva Priyakumar U, associate professor, International Institute of Information Technology and Anu Acharya, CEO mapmygenome.com.

The valedictory address was delivered by Padma Shri Dr A S Soin, chief hepatobiliary and liver transplant surgeon & chairman, Institute of Liver Transplantation and Regenerative Medicine, Medanta – Medicity, Gurgaon. His passionate talk on the way transplant has moved by leaps and bounds gave an insight into the rapidly changing world of medicine driven by technology. Dr Soin had the audience spellbound as he described the advances in medicine and how the students could play a role in furthering the cause of science.

Congratulating the winners, Jawed Zia, country president, Novartis India said, “India has consistently produced winners at the global BioCamp. Interacting with such a bright group of students is very stimulating. Novartis is reimagining medicine and I look forward to you being a part of this journey.”

The Novartis Biotechnology Leadership Camp (BioCamp) has been held annually in Asian countries since 2004, starting in Taiwan as a local event. It has since grown impressively into a global event. Around 60 students from around the world are expected to participate in the global BioCamp being held at the Novartis Campus in Basel, Switzerland from August 28 to 31, 2016.

BioCamp is a first of its kind pioneering seminar organised by Novartis that brings young, talented students from diverse faculties and different universities closer to the field. It is open to postgraduate students and young researchers in science, pharmacology, medicine, biotechnology, business management (preference to students with a science background) or law (specialization in IPR) interested in pursuing a career in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry.

Students go through a rigorous judging process before they are selected to participate in the country BioCamps. 51 students from diverse faculties including pharmacology, biotechnology, life sciences, finance, biomedical engineering, genetics, business management and toxicology participated at the recently concluded India event.

Institutes they came from included the Indian Institutes of Technology, Kharagpur and Bombay; St Xavier’s College, Kolkata; Fr Muller’s Medical College, Mangalore; Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai; BITS – Pilani; Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences, Bangalore; Christian Medical College, Vellore, XLRI Jamshedpur and Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune among others.