The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has allocated Rs 350 crore under the Biotechnology Industry Partnership Programme (BIPP). This will now allow the industry to undertake high risk, leading edge research programmes.

The grants are also offered to support clinical trials and agricultural field trials. There will also be grant-in-aid for building shared infrastructural facilities to be run under private management. These would include animal houses, analytical facilities, BSL3/4 facilities to name a few. Also various models of management and ownership are also possible. The thrust areas for BIPP are healthcare, bio-energy and green manufacturing and agriculture.

The proposals for the BIPP assistance can come in from a single industry or an industry consortium or public institute. However the industry be Indian owned and have a 51 per cent stake. The Intellectual Property would belong to the industry for industry proposals. The industry will have exclusive rights for 10 years post commercialization. The single digit royalty to Government will range from 0.5 per cent to 1 per cent or 3 to 7 per cent depending upon the type of assistance and category of assistance.

Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Programme or BIRAP will ultimately transform into the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) which is a not for profit enterprise and it will be responsible to administer the BIPP scheme. The BIRAP is a coordinated effort between the department of biotechnology, Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE) and (Biotechnology Consortium of India Limited (BCIL), which is the nodal agency for the commercialization of the biotechnology projects.

Under BIRAP, the DBT will provide the funding, BCIL will extend the logistics & support and ABLE will provide the industry oriented strategy & direction. The director general of ABLE, Shrikumar Suryanarayan, will head BIRAP.

BIRAP is authorized to manage industry related schemes for DBT like the BIPP. It will provide strategic information research and analysis for industry, including Intellectual Property facilitation. It will fund skills and capacity building programs. It will help to access, license and acquire technology for the biotech industry, stated Shrikumar Suryanarayan, Director General, ABLE.

BIPP will be advertised about thrice a year to call for promising applicants who can benefit from the assistance. The four categories under which applications can be submitted include product development support under category 1 and 2. The category 3 will look for product validation support and category 4 for infrastructural facilities that facilitate innovation and development. In all categories, the industry could submit a concept note or a full proposal except for the infrastructural facilities under category 4.

Under the programme, the concept notes are being invited for this first round before 31st December 2008. Only full proposals will be considered for funding before 31st March 2009. The concept notes will be screened and short-listed where the industry will be identified and will be invited to submit full proposals, explained the director general of ABLE.