Change of Guard
The New Year has certainly brought good tidings to the fledgling biotechnology industry. There are several indications that biotechnology might finally become mainstream, getting out of the confines of laboratories. One of the surest signs is Prime Minister A B Vajpayee's inclusion of biotechnology as one of the identified areas of cooperation with our neighboring countries after the early January summit of the heads of SAARC governments in Islamabad. So far this was reserved mainly for culture, science and technology and information technology (IT) as trade and other such areas have always remained controversial for any meaningful cooperation between the countries.
IT too was confined to the sidelines till the mid-1990s when the amazing growth rates of software exports caught the national attention. And then every national leader tried to bask in the software sunshine by making use of every available forum to talk glowingly about India's software expertise. The probability of biotechnology attaining similar cult status among the nation's influential person is very high for the simple reason that this "technology of life" can have equally if not more far reaching impact on a much larger section of people than IT.
Another clear sign of the future is the appointment of the new secretary of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the apex policy making body of this sector in the government. The secretary-designate Dr Maharaj Krishan Bhan is an acclaimed health care expert as the developer of diarrhea vaccine. Industry watchers feel that the government is sending out a clear signal from Dr Bhan's appointment that the health care aspect of biotechnology requires a clear thrust. This is also clear from the first ever detailed interview given to BioSpectrum by Dr Bhan where he clearly talks about the need to quickly share the benefits of modern health care biotech developments with the largest number of people through appropriate mechanisms such as balanced price and health care insurance.
Equally important is Dr Bhan's emphasis on forging partnerships with the emerging biotechnology industry in speeding up the regulatory processes, creating awareness about the benefits of biotechnology among people, willingness to partner with the industry to rework the national priorities in this sector as well as the offer to consider all feedbacks from industry leaders.
Why am I really optimistic about the growth of the
biotechnology industry? In recent weeks, we have heard not just "feel
good" stories about the national economy but also the talk about India
becoming a major hug for industrial research and the global hotspot for the
manufacture of small cars. Together these sectors have the potential to
transform the Indian economy, along with IT-enabled services to an altogether
new growth trajectory. To this, we could add another sector: vaccines. As the
cover story of this issue indicates, there is every possibility of India
becoming one of the world's most preferred destinations for manufacture of a
host of essential vaccines. The global market for vaccines is growing at over 10
percent and is currently pegged at $6 billion. Clearly, with some of our
enlightened biotech companies taking the lead in this area, a new world of
opportunity to meet the world's vaccine supplies is reaching our doors. Some
companies like Serum Institute and Indian Immunologicals have already taken the
lead in some products. It is only a matter of time some of the enlightened
entrepreneurs grab the opportunities. With Dr Bhan promising a quick, efficient
and effective regulatory mechanism, the biotech Moon (or Mars) is within 
our
reach.
