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The Indian biotech startups took centre-stage with unveiling 11 products at the ‘Global Bio-India 2024’ that showcased the country’s emerging talent in biosciences, it was announced on Saturday. 

The fourth edition of the event, organised by Department of Biotechnology (DBT) in the national capital, concluded after showcasing India’s biotech prowess. The theme highlighted the potential and opportunities in biotech innovation and bio-manufacturing and its impact on the bio-economy.

The ceremony also marked the launch of calls for proposals under the i4 (Innovation for Industry) and PACE (promoting academic collaboration and entrepreneurship) programmes, furthering the government’s commitment to fostering innovation.

Professor V Ramgopal Rao, Group Vice Chancellor, Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS) Pilani, emphasised the need for India to develop organisational models similar to the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) for other emerging technologies like nanotechnology and quantum technology.

He also stressed the importance of fostering deep tech startups led by PhDs and academic faculty, urging institutions to encourage entrepreneurship.

The event demonstrated India’s potential in the biotech sector with evidence, both within the country and to the world, paving out a roadmap to leapfrog the Biotech innovation and Bio-manufacturing in the country, said the Ministry of Science and Technology.

According to Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh, India's bio-economy has experienced remarkable growth, skyrocketing from $10 billion in 2014 to over $130 billion in 2024, with projections to reach $300 billion by 2030.

There are 30 breakthrough startups, paving the way for the future of biotech.

According to the minister, there are a billion reasons to invest in India. The reasons being India has 60 per cent share of global vaccine production, it has the second highest number of FDA-approved manufacturing plants outside the US.

Opportunities for investments are available in bio-pharma, bio-agri, bio-industrial, bio-energy, bio-Services and med-tech, said the minister.