Biotech sector to be a US$ 100 billion industry by 2025

 The Dollar Business Bureau The biotechnology sector is growing at the rate of 30 % annually and India is set to become home to the world’s third largest setup in the sector by 2025, said Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Science and Technology. “I see ten years down the road, a US $ 100-billion industry which will be the powerhouse of not only India’s pharmaceutical sector, but also be on a global scale,” said the minister, adding, “At this rate of growth, it looks likely to be bigger than the domestic pharmaceutical industry.” The minister was speaking at the inaugural session of the first phase of the Bio Innovation Centre (BIC) of the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), in Tiruvananthapuram, on Sunday. The minister also said that nourishing the sector is a crucial aspect of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision towards keeping scientific talent drawn to India. The prime minister, during his recent visit to the United States, invited the new generation of biotechnology professionals to consider building careers in their country of origin. The minister said that plans towards building clusters of growth which would bring together international societies of scientists are linked to biotechnology. “Backed by the government’s liberal policy in allowing 100 % FDI for Greenfield and Brownfield projects, this is definitely a winning situation,” he added. Lauding the RGCB for its high standard research and development in selected areas of biotechnology, the minister said the BIC, set up with an outlay of Rs 100 crore, will help the RGCB in enhancing its fundamental research, besides boosting the Centre’s research in specified sectors like disease biology, molecular medicine and others. Talking about the second phase of the BIC, the minister said that the private sector investment will be drawn to the project. The minister said that the RGCB is poised to become a major biotech growth centre and it will help the Centre in carrying out pre-clinical, analytical, toxicological and biological analysis to validate biotech or biological products.      

May 18, 2015 | 3:07 pm IST.