Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), a
public sector undertaking of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) organized a
two-day Innovators Conclave
& Bio-Innovation Fair at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The theme for the conclave was BIRAC Bio-Innovations: Propelling the
Bio-economy. The conclave was inaugurated by the Union
Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Dr. Harsh Vardhan,
and attended by Guest of Honour, YS Chowdary, Minister of State (MoS), Science
& Technology and Earth Sciences. The Conclave brought together nearly 300 innovators and startups,
scientists from industry and academia, public and private sector, policy
makers, and national and international organisations.
Inaugurating the
conclave, the Chief Guest, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for
Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, said,“BIRAC led by the DBT is
playing a catalytic role in building a 100 billion-dollar Indian bio-economy.
We are now effectively leveraging the research and entrepreneurial capabilities
of this sector to address the needs of our people by creating affordable
products that have the potential to change lives and catapult India in to a
brighter future. Our Government is focused on making India a global hub for
innovation and BIRAC is playing a crucial role in shaping the biotech
innovation ecosystem of India.”
The Guest of
Honour, YS Chowdary, MoS, Science & Technology and Earth Sciences
said, “Over the last 5 years, a foundation has been laid for
making India a global leader in biotechnology research and development. We are
ensuring that our innovators and indigenous products receive the encouragement
and support to make their mark on the international biotech stage. We are very
proud of the impact that BIRAC has generated in such a short span and this
Innovation Conclave is testament to it.”
BIRAC has provided
financial and mentoring support to more than 500 companies, and nearly 500
young entrepreneurs and startups. BIRAC’s partnership network includes more
than 15 implementing agencies both national and international, nearly 700
national experts from academia, industry, public and private research
laboratories, donor agencies and other government departments that can
contribute towards building the innovation ecosystem of India.
Prof. VijayRaghavan, Secretary, DBT and Chairman, BIRAC during
the event said, “The country’s biotech startup landscape has shown immense
growth over the last five years. BIRAC was created to bridge the space between
policy, industry and academia in the biotech sector and bring all stakeholders
together on one platform. Our impact on the biotech innovation landscape is
clearly visible.”
The conclave was host to a bio-innovation fair and an innovation
market place and featured a number of key panel discussions including “The
Startup Conversation: Gaps, Opportunities and the way forward” featuring
venture capitalists and angel investors and a discussion on “Pathways to
create impact through Biotech Innovations to the power of Infinity”
featuring decision-makers and experts. The conclave ended with the
bio-innovation fair awards. The bio-innovation fair played host to more than 65 innovations
supported under various initiatives of DBT and BIRAC.
Dr. Renu Swarup, Senior
Advisor, DBT and Managing Director, BIRAC said, “BIRAC has transformed the
biotech innovation ecosystem in the country. Our investments in the Indian
innovation ecosystem are bearing fruit and our innovations are now showing real
impact and producing tangible benefits for society. This Innovation Fair is the
perfect occasion for us to showcase what our up and coming investigators are
working on and how they hope to transform India. This fair also gives us the
opportunity to showcase the potential for scale-up of these innovations to
relevant stakeholders and decision-makers.”
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