The government of Punjab has notified the establishment of the Punjab Biotechnology Development Board (PBDB) for networking and streamlining all biotech related activities in the state. The board will be the nodal agency to supervise the entire range of initiatives beginning from the development of biotech clusters to the commercialization technologies/products developed in the biotechnology sector in Punjab. The government is also in the process of acquiring 90 acres of land for the development of the state's first biotech park (Punjab Biotech Park) focusing on 15 - 20 specific industrial segments.
The PBDB would try to materialize the biotech policy objectives announced by the state government last year.
According to Rajesh Grover, senior scientific officer, Punjab State Council for Science and Technology, the policy commitments given by the government include the setting up of biotech parks, incubators, public perception building cells, single window clearance facilities and uninterrupted electricity & water supply for all the projects.
The technology profiles that are to be encouraged in the Biotech Park include medicinal plant extraction, biopesticides, PCR based test system for detection of tuberculosis, Infectious Bovine Rhinotrachettis (IBR) vaccine, New Castle Disease (ND) vaccine, production of gluconate salts using fermentation technology and herbal products - phytochemicals, phytopharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals & cosmeticeuticals. The government has already signed an MOU signed with M/s Beckons Industries Ltd. and is actively pursuing a proposal from Seskatchewan, Canada for setting shop in the park.
The PBDB would also promote biotech incubators, a joint venture scheme with equal participation from the central government. The incubators could be utilized for validation, scale up, testing and certification of biotech products.
"The state would also make use of the technology strengths of national institutes like National Institute for Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTECH) and Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER)", Grover said. A late entrant in biotech industrial sector, the state is yet to play a major role in Indian pharmaceutical industry segment. The companies who have a presence in the state are Ranbaxy, Max GB, Panacea Biotech, Pfizer India, Ind-Swift Ltd, Phulwari Biotech and Punjab Sugar Biotech.
Interestingly, Punjab came out with a vision document on biotechnology three years ago. However, it couldn't maintain the momentum that caused a delay of about two years in translating the vision document into a biotech policy. Now that PBDB is in place, the state hopes to catch up with the lost time and emerge as a strong player in biotech industrial segment.