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NEW DELHI, February 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Global Biotechnology Summit 2016 Inaugurated in Delhi; Discusses Action Plan for US$ 100 billion Targets for Biotech Sector  

Key Highlights:  

- Biotech summit discusses action plan for 100 billion targets in two-day plenary sessions attended by more than 1500 eminent scientists, entrepreneurs' policymakers and civil society

- India among top 12 biotech destinations in the world

- Second largest producer of recombinant DNA vaccines

- Houses over 800 biotech companies

- US$ 100 billion industry by 2025

- Support for capacity building & excellence in Life Sciences & Biotech research

- 24 products, 20 technologies, more than 150 IPs generated & 100 entrepreneurs promoted

The two-day 'Global Biotechnology Summit' organized by the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India, brought together nearly 1500 participants to discuss opportunities, collaborate and prepare a joint action plan for achieving the target for its biotech sector of US$ 100 bn. by 2020.

The summit, organized on the occasion of celebration of the 30th Foundation Day of Department of Biotechnology, was attended by more than 1500 participants including eminent scientists from national and international public and private sector organizations, universities, delegations from state governments, representatives and delegations from other countries with which DBT partners, students, research fellows, biotech start-up entrepreneurs, policy-makers, civil society and so on. Also, present on the occasion were the Former Secretaries of DBT.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Hon'ble Minister of Science & Technology & ES, was the Chief Guest for the occasion. Guests of honour were Shri Radha Mohan Singh, Hon'ble Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon'ble Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Shri Y. S. Chowdary, Hon'ble Minister of State, Ministry of Science & Technology and ES.

Congratulating the DBT, its staff and the scientific community, Hon'ble Minister for Science and Technology - Dr. Harsha Vardhan in his inaugural address said, "Over the 30 years DBT has achieved several heights and connected research to the needs of the people. Biotechnology has become a crucial arm of the 'Make in India' campaign. The message of the summit is very clear. India is ready to be a Global Biotech Destination."

The mega event showcased India's biotechnology strength and capacity to attract investors and other key partners to invest in the biotech sector in India. The summit was a well-planned follow-up to the Hon'ble Prime Minister's call for 'Make in India' to encourage the start-up ecosystem which has a potential for scale-up.

There were key plenary talks by Prof. Ada E. Yonath, Nobel Laureate, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel and Prof. Maria Leptin, EMBO - Excellence in Life Sciences, Heidelberg, Germany.  

"Through its wonderful work the DBT has been actively contributing to some of the key initiatives of the government of India and contributed to multifarious areas like healthcare, agricultural, environmental and industrial. We are ready to launch the Start-up Ecosystem which will contribute immensely to achieving our target of US$ 100 billion by 2025," said Shri Y S Chowdhury, Hon'ble Minister of State for Science and Technology.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, Hon'ble Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said, "The contribution of biotechnology to the achievements in the agriculture sector have been very crucial, the impact of new technologies on development of improve varieties can be seen. I am confident that this sector will grow and contribute to the growth of the bioeconomy."

Addressing the gathering, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon'ble Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Commerce & Industry said, "India is today moving forward rapidly to be an innovation nation and Indian biotechnology is poised to provide solutions to a large number of challenges that we face in health, food and environmental sectors. The solutions that India offers are of relevance both nationally and globally. The Biotech Industry is well poised to achieve target of US$ 100 billion by 2025. A dynamic and vibrant Biotechnology Industry is one of the main engines of Innovation."

The summit focused on the priority themes - Make in India, Start-up India - Nurturing Bio entrepreneurship, Skill India, Biotech opportunities and action for Swachh Bharat and Swasth Bharat, Biotechnology cooperation, Biotechnology Innovation for inclusive development, Biotechnology and Society.

"Steered under the leadership of brilliant minds over the years, biotechnology in India has crossed significant milestones. With the experience of 30 years DBT's endeavor will be to further improve our processes and culture so that we expand our reach and depth effectively," said Professor VijayRaghavan, Secretary DBT.

Plenary talks and panel discussions helped align the goals of the biotech strategy with the policies of State Governments and prepare joint action plan. It showed the path to exciting opportunities for students and researchers by giving them an exposure to the best experts in the field.