special story
diagnostics and medical devices to better address the rising burden of diseases in the country. It will also bring isolated centres of excellence together, enhance regional capabilities and strengthen the current bio-clusters network in terms of capacities as well as quantity and quality of output.
Expanding on the scope of the program, Dr K VijayRaghavan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology & Chairman BIRAC shared, that“ This endeavor will help nurture next- generation technical skills; promote entrepreneurship; and support institutions in adoption of global innovations, technologies, and licensing models. It will provide young entrepreneurs the confidence as well as the systemic support to pursue their aspirations in biotechnological innovation, and transform India into a global hub for cutting-edge biotechnology research and development”.
Total project cost to be funded by Government of India in Indian currency is approximately Rs 1500 crore for five years. Fifty percent costs for the Mission Programme will be arranged through the World Bank loan.
The oversight to the program would be provided by the Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee comprising of members from various Ministries and would be supported by Program Technical Advisory Group comprising of global and national leaders from industry and academia. The program thereby stands unique in its approach as it becomes a cradle to innovate, cocreate and cofacilitate scientific discoveries and offers young entrepreneurs an avenue to engage with the best in the industry.
Speaking at the occasion, Dr Renu Swarup, Senior Adviser DBT & MD, BIRAC shared,“ We undertook an extensive landscaping study to identify critical gaps impeding growth and innovation in the Biopharma sector. Taking
44 BioVoiceNews | July 2017