Merck Millipore, the life science division of Merck KGaA of Darmstadt, Germany, today announced the launch of the Merck Millipore India Innovation Awards (MMIIA). The programme is the first-of-its-kind and is intended to recognize exemplary research undertaken by scientists from government-funded and not-for-profit public research institutes in the field of life science, i.e. green chemistry, medicinal chemistry, chemical and bioanalytics, proteomics, genomics, drug discovery and delivery, biomanufacturing, biomarkers and synthetic biology.


Unlike other awards, MMIIA hopes to celebrate, encourage and inspire innovation amongst the Indian scientific community in the life science sector. The awards aim to acknowledge efforts of scientists who are working tirelessly to produce innovative research outside of commercial research centres.


A jury comprising seven eminent scientists from India and Germany will select three winners from a shortlisted group of candidates. In addition to a certificate of merit, the three winners will receive a cash reward of Rs.3 million, Rs.2 million and Rs.1 million, respectively to help further their research prospects.


“India comprises one of the world’s fastest growing pharmaceutical markets and possesses a huge potential to become a global frontrunner in biotech, medical and public health research”, Dr. Marek Dziki, MD, Merck Limited. “By instituting the Merck Millipore India Innovation Awards we hope to provide Indian scientists with the necessary resources and recognition to fulfil their research aspirations and enable them to excel.”


Prantik Mukherjee, Head, Merck Millipore in India added, “The Merck Millipore India Innovation Awards programme is an apt reflection of our global vision of unleashing the potential of science for life. We believe we are strategic partners to our customers, and through, this award programme, are one step closer to delivering on our commitment to advance the promise of life science.”


Dr Theodor Dingermann, director of the Institute of Pharmaceutical Biology at the Goethe-University in Frankfurt and a member of MMIIA’s Scientific Advisory Board, remarked: “The scientific community in India is amongst the best in the world but often does not have access to world-class resources and facilities like its global counterparts. The Merck Millipore India Innovation Awards will provide scientists in the public sector with the opportunity to strengthen their research. The selection criterion is based on the innovation impact level, scientific creativity, industrial scalability and sustainability. We are looking for a scientific innovation that contributes towards improving the quality of life, helps in employment generation and facilitates economic transformations.”


The deadline for submissions to the Merck Millipore India Innovation Awards is January 15, 2012. The selection process will run from January 16 to May 31, 2012 and the winners will be announced at a scientific symposium in mid-2012.