(MENAFN- KNN India) New Delhi, Nov 11 (KNN) Minister of State (Independent Charge), Science and Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, said on Monday that India has entered the next biotechnology-driven industrial revolution and is poised to become a global leader in bio-innovation.

Addressing the second Foundation Day of the Biotechnology Research & Innovation Council (BRIC) at the National Institute of Immunology (NII) in New Delhi, he inaugurated the NHP-ABSL-3 facility and launched the BRIC–BIRAC Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) programme.

Dr. Singh highlighted that India is among the few nations with a dedicated biotechnology policy, BioE3.

He noted that the merger of 14 autonomous biotech institutions under BRIC has strengthened collaboration and accelerated innovation, fostering deeper coordination across biotechnology, medical research, agriculture, data science, academia, and industry.

The minister said biotechnology has become a key driver of India's role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, stating that in the next phase of global growth, India will be 'a leader, not a follower'.

He cited advances in biosafety infrastructure, progress in hemophilia gene therapy, and India's transformation into a supplier of preventive healthcare during the pandemic as markers of scientific leadership. Public-private models such as BRIC and BIRAC, he added, have become global benchmarks.

Dr. Singh pointed to the rapid expansion of India's bioeconomy-from about USD 10 billion to over USD 130 billion-projected to reach USD 300 billion in the coming years, supported by a growing startup ecosystem and targeted government schemes.

He said the bio-economy mission and translational research capacities are significantly contributing to national growth.

Department of Biotechnology (DBT) Secretary and BRIC Director-General Dr. Rajesh S. Gokhale highlighted that, over the past three years, BRIC institutions have produced 3,190 research publications, filed 107 patents, commercialised 13 technologies, and developed a talent pipeline of over 3,200 PhD and post-doctoral researchers.

He announced the establishment of a 200-acre BRIC Bio-Enterprise Innovation Park in Faridabad and reported strong participation-over 500 entries-in the Design for BioE3 Challenge.

(KNN Bureau)

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