BIO-NIVESH
Prelims:
biotechnology
ecosystem
Mains:
GS Paper III:
Science & Technology, Indian Economy
Current relevance:
Union Minister
launched BIO-NIVESH, a strategic platform designed to strengthen
engagement between biotechnology innovators and investors and catalyse
the flow of private capital into promising biotechnology innovations for
their scale-up and commercialisation.
Highlights:
About BIO-NIVESH:
1.
Strategic Platform: BIO-NIVESH seeks to create a stronger interface between biotechnology
innovators, entrepreneurs and the investment community.
2. Core Objective: It aims to catalyse private
investment into promising biotechnology innovations for scale-up and
commercialisation.
3. To transform promising research and entrepreneurial ideas
into scalable, industry-ready innovations with access to wider markets.
4. Stakeholder Engagement: It brings together
innovators, investors, industry and Government to strengthen biotechnology-led
growth.
5. Recurring Platform: Subsequent editions
are proposed across different cities to connect regional biotechnology
innovation ecosystems with investment networks.
Institutional & Funding
Ecosystem:
1.
Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance
Council (BIRAC) and its team are involved in bringing
together diverse stakeholders under BIO-NIVESH.
2. The
initiative reflects a broader “whole of government plus whole of nation”
approach, recognising that biotechnology innovation and investment require
coordination across multiple ministries and sectors.
3. The Research,
Development and Innovation (RDI) Fund has an outlay of ₹1 lakh crore.
4. Under
the RDI Fund, BIRAC has been designated as a Second-Level Fund Manager
for biotechnology and allied sectors.
5. The framework is intended to enable long-term patient capital for technology developers, startups and companies in strategic biotechnology domains, particularly projects ready for technology translation, scale-up and innovation-led manufacturing.
Capital Requirements of the
Biotechnology Sector:
1.
Biotechnology involves longer development
cycles, demanding regulatory pathways and significant capital requirements.
2. Successful
biotechnology innovations can generate lasting benefits for health, society
and the economy.
3. Investors
are encouraged to assess not merely immediate funding requirements but also the
technology, intellectual property, development pathway, market potential and
global competitiveness of innovations.
4. Investors
can provide more than capital by contributing strategic knowledge,
partnerships, manufacturing capabilities, market access and global networks.
5. The
next phase of India's bioeconomy requires promising innovations to receive
adequate capital, partnerships and market access to move from laboratory
to scale and global markets.
Science–Capital–Market
Interface:
BIO-NIVESH seeks to build an ecosystem that
connects science with capital, innovation with industry, and research with
the market.
1.
Government Role: Government can
create enabling conditions and undertake the initial risk associated with
innovation.
2. Private
Capital: Private investment has a critical role in sustaining
growth, building enterprises and taking technologies to scale.
3. Catalytic
Public Funding: Government support is intended to reduce early-stage
risk, demonstrate technological potential and make innovations more
attractive to private investment.
4. Early
Investor Engagement: Innovators are encouraged to engage
investors early in the development process.
‘Big Five in Five Years’
Approach:
1.
During the BIO-NIVESH roundtable, the
Minister suggested examining the feasibility of a “Big Five in Five Years”
approach for the biotechnology ecosystem.
2. The
idea involves focusing resources on creating a few large anchor companies.
3. Such
anchor companies could create a wider ecosystem within which other startups
can grow and expand.
4. Ideas
emerging from other sectors could also be examined for application in
biotechnology wherever feasible.
Source: PIB - https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseDetail.aspx?PRID=2306405®=48&lang=1