NCBS-TIFR which houses the Bangalore Life Science Cluster for advancing modern biological research, has created an Endowment Fund. The Centre intends to garner Rs. 25 crore for this endowment fund to commemorate its silver jubilee this year. Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has provided Rs. 5 crore as endowment funding support.
Three premiere institutions including NCBS-TIFR, the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine (inStem) and the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) are together creating opportunities at the cluster for a range of research activities from basic biology to application-oriented biotechnology.
Most of the world's top research institutes further their work through a mixed portfolio of conventional and unrestricted support. Endowment funds at organizations worldwide provide significant support to their activities. NCBS-TIFR aims to eventually build, by the year 2020, a significant corpus to provide flexible support for research in a dynamic environment.
Dr Mazumdar-Shaw's donation towards the Endowment Fund at NCBS-TIFR is one in perpetuity. The fund will remain intact as a core investment, with only the interest being used for various activities, the foremost being the advancement of promising but bold research projects. In particular, the fund will support early stage research and innovation deemed too risky for conventional funding mechanisms, national and international collaborations and outreach of research for societal impact.
