NEW DELHI: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, on Sunday, claimed that India is on way to become a global bio-manufacturing hub and one of the 5 top countries in it.
Speaking at the 37th Foundation day of Department of Biotechnology (DBT) as chief guest at National Institute of Immunology (NII), here, Dr Singh claimed, "India is poised to become a Global Bio-manufacturing hub and figure among the top 5 countries of the world by 2025."
He assured that there would be no dearth of fund under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to promote the 'Innovation Eco-System' in the country as the BJP-led NDA government is committed to promote the ‘Industry-driven Start-Ups’ to create a huge avenue of jobs and wealth.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science and Technology said, “The Government will promote Industry-driven Start-Ups to create wealth and jobs. The sky of Start-Ups will become sustainable, if Industry from the very beginning will identify the subject/product and invest matching equity with the Government”.
Spelling out the growing significances of Startups in the modern science-driven era of advancements, Dr Singh called for “equal stake with equal partnership” and responsibility by Industry to sustain the Start-Ups boom.
Elaborating the PM’s idea of an “Atma Nirbhar Bharat”, the minister said that India’s vaccine strategy has brought together the pharmacy, industry and academia in a partnership with an eye on meeting the current as well as possible future challenges. He pointed out that the idea behind initiatives like this has always been aimed at bringing a sustainable partnership in the long run and provide a sustainable source of livelihood to India’s youth.
Highlighting the government’s all initiatives, the minister categorically reiterated that India’s bio-economy has grown up 8 times in the last 8 years under the vision of the PM Modi from USD 10 billion in 2014 to over USD 80 billion in 2022.
“This is not alone to cheer up. The Biotech Startups have also multiplied 100 times in the last 8 years in the country from 52 odd startups in 2014 to more than 5300 startups in 2022. A total of 1,128 Biotech Startups were brought into form in 2021 alone exhibiting the pace of growth taking place in this sector”,
he remarked.
He claimed that the Biotechnology Sector in India has made significant contribution in various sectors including health, medicine, agriculture, industry and bio-informatics, due to enormous support received both from government and private sector.
“As results of our sustained efforts, India is now being rated among top 12 biotechnology destinations in the world”, he claimed.
The department of Biotechnology (DBT) under the Ministry of Science and Technology is the nodal agency for promotion of Biotechnology in the country by creating a strong ecosystem for facilitating basic. It has established 15 theme-based autonomous institutions across the country.
The Department played a key role in development of vaccines for the ‘swasth Bharat’ through its network of academia, startups, and institutes. It is credited with developing the India’s 1st indigenously developed quadrivalent Human Papilloma Virus (qHPV) vaccine against cervical cancer.