The Andhra Pradesh government has agreed to make available the land for the establishment of Centre Translational Research (CTR) in Hyderabad. The institute is to be set up by Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in co-ordination with Indian Council and Medical Research (ICMR) and Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB).

According to government sources, the CTR will come up in Genome Valley phase III at Karkapatla in the city. The investment proposed for the institute is between Rs 100 crore and Rs150 crore. The Planning Commission will allocate the funds for the venture.

The proposal has come up for consideration incidentally when CSIR held its meeting at Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) in Hyderabad. Though it was not known what transpired at IICT meeting, the sources said scientists who were present at the meeting raised the need for setting up a CTR.

The sources in the Department of Biotechnology of the Andhra Pradesh government told Pharmabiz that the proposal for the establishment of CTR had been on the anvil for long time and it took concrete shape now.

The AP government has recently allotted 300 acre land for phase III works of Genome valley project. The land is being developed by Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC).

It may be recalled that the government has helped biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry take their strong roots in the state by allocating land and infrastructure in Genome Valley phase I and phase II. The government is also considering to set up an international animal resources facility in Genome Valley in collaboration with ICMR and National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) for clinical research.