Kerala Biotechnology Board To Boost Entrepreneurship In Biotech Sector
Earlier this month, the reconstituted Kerala Biotechnology Board held its first meeting with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan chairing the session and stressing upon the need to revise the State’s biotechnology policy with the focus on integration of information technology and biotechnology to develop new drugs, diagnostic tools, and environment conservation methods.
The board was reconstituted in order to promote biotechnology-based industries in Kerala, with an objective to transform the State into one of the top destinations in the sector.
Further, the meeting had also discussed setting up a Biotechnology Industry Promotion and Assistance Centre (BIPAC) to extend financial support for industrial research and development programmes under public-private or public partnerships.
BIPAC would have a targeted funding mechanism involving a Scheme for Entrepreneurial Promotion, Refining and Industrialisation Support (SEPRIS) in the initial stage and a Scheme for One-time Start-up Support (SOSS) in the subsequent phase.
“BIPAC will be a facility to support the final stage of industrial development which often turns out to be an insurmountable obstacle for many entrepreneurs”, says Prof. G.M. Nair, Advisor, Kerala Biotechnology Commission. “Providing seed money at this juncture is critical for an input-intensive industry like biotechnology which requires heavy investment on equipment in the initial stage,
” Prof. Nair said.Now, the government has announced that under SEPRIS, entrepreneurs would be given a grant of ₹500,000 for developing proof of concept of their proposed venture, followed by an entrepreneurship development fund upto ₹25 lakh. SOSS, on the other hand, seeks to support start-ups with a seed money assistance upto ₹25 lakh. With this approval, the board has another set of proposals aimed at promoting research and development and entrepreneurial ventures in biotechnology lined up. It also decided to launch the Chief Minister’s Career Advancement Programme in Biotechnology to promote national and international collaborative research in emerging areas. An industry associate programme for faculty/ scientists to work in industry and industrial training for postgraduate students in biotechnology are other major proposals.
Principal Secretary, Science and Technology, Mr. Suresh Das said the funding support was designed to minimise the risks associated with commercialisation of products. “We have received positive feelers from industrialists willing to invest in the State.”
“If all goes well, Kerala can hope to gain a foothold in the biotech industry sector within a matter of two to three years,” Prof. Nair said.
