Biotechnology in India – a historical back ground

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) was established by the Ministry of Science and Technology in 1986. This gave new impetus to the development of biotechnology in India. The DBT has established several centers of excellence in the country. These centers are responsible for the generation of skilled workers, the development of research initiatives and opportunities and sustain its R & D in the private sector and provides the platform to stand on their research activities in these centers. This facilitated the interaction between academia and industry that led to the real estate entrepreneur and a number of initiatives to take root and grow biotechnology in India.

The Indian government has developed in biosecurity and helped establish the patent rules. He also participated in technology transfer and international cooperation. The center also plans to introduce other venture capital funds in line with its Technology Development Fund (TDF) to promote small and medium biotech companies.

The Indian government has set up a decent regulatory framework for approving GM crops and products of recombinant DNA for human health. A proactive government policy allows stem cells in the country, despite having put in place its code of ethics. The patent system, which came into force in 2005 and led to give a message to the world and the Indian industry that India supports the framework of rules and rewards of research and new initiatives. The second amendment to the Indian patent law includes a patent period of 20 years, the provision of emergency and early R & D, immediately after the filing of patents. The bill is consistent with WTO provisions and travel and make Indian laws compatible with what was agreed in the framework of multilateral negotiations.

Several states have taken their own initiatives in terms of defining their own policies to boost the biotechnology industry in this sector and biotechnology in India, as a whole. States like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh are developing biotech parks. This is to encourage research, establish links between their research institutions and industry. various concessions offered to the industry in terms of one-stop shop for quick clearance, exemption from taxation, the creation of funds to be used for the incubation of a new project.

Thanks to the concerted efforts of the Ministry of Science and Technology, a number of centers of excellence in the field were established. These places have a world-class infrastructure and research centers to be fully developed. These centers are open to collaboration. Some of them are: Plant Genomics Center, New Delhi, Center for Human Genetics, Bangalore, National Institute of Biologicals, New Delhi, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad, National Facility for Macromolecular Crystallography, BARC, Mumbai, National Endowment for the high field NMR, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, Central Institute of Drug Research, Lucknow, National Brain Research Centre, New Delhi, CIMAP, Lucknow.