India
November 14, 2007
T. V. Padma,
SciDev.Net
India
has launched a
national biotechnology development strategy focusing on
biotechnology's potential to provide long-term benefits for
agriculture, health and the environment.
The strategy, issued by science minister Kapil Sibal this week
(13 November), includes a target for the biotechnology industry
to generate US$7 billion by 2012, and the revamping of
biotechnology education programmes to create global centres of
educational and research excellence.
To achieve this target, Sibal said the country will boost funds
for biotechnology by five-fold over the next five years, from
14,500 million Indian rupees (US$362 million) during 2002–2007
to 65,000 million Indian rupees (US$1.6 billion) by 2012.
He said at the press briefing for the strategy that the funds
will be used to "beef up" India's biotechnology infrastructure.
"We need a new vision. The next big challenges are in health,
agriculture and environment, which the nation must invest in
seriously," Sibal told reporters.
In a major new initiative, the strategy will reserve up to 30
per cent of Department of Biotechnology's (DBT's) budget for
public-private partnerships and the launch of a biotechnology
industry partnership programme for advanced technologies.
The strategy aims to improve biotechnology education throughout
the country by identifying highly-reputed colleges in around 20
smaller universities and supporting them through teacher
training programmes.
Existing university science departments will be upgraded, and
departments working on different disciplines will be streamlined
to create globally competitive centres of education and
research.
A UNESCO regional centre for science, education and innovation
in biotechnology will be set up at Faridabad, near Delhi in
northern India. The centre will provide global standard,
industry-oriented training for physicians, biologists and
engineers.
India is also introducing a cost-sharing scheme that allows
industry to retain intellectual property. The DBT has drafted
two bills to be taken to the Indian Parliament in 2008, one of
which relates to protection, utilisation and regulation of
intellectual property.
Strategy report:
http://dbtindia.nic.in/biotechstrategy/National%20Biotechnology%20Development%20Strategy.pdf
|
|