Bangalore Bio 2016: Medicine of the future is the focus

Union minister for science and technology Harsh Vardhan and Biocon CMD Kiran Mazumdar Shaw with others during the “16th Bangalore INDIA BIO 2016” in Bengaluru on Tuesday. — R. Samuel

It will take an investment worth $5 billion in biotechnology to realise the target of making it a $100 billion sector by 2025, said Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar Shaw at the Bangalore India Bio 2016 event that kick started on Tuesday.

Setting tone for the three-day long event Dr. Shaw led the focus on strengthening the bio-cluster ecosystem in the state.

"Today, biotechnology is a $11 billion sector, growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 20 per cent. We also are aspiring to be a $100 billion sector by 2025," Dr. Shaw said.

While affordable innovation model to help address the burgeoning healthcare challenges of India remained an area of focus at the first day of the event, collaboration between countries to build cure for better healthcare outcomes cure for better health outcomes was also discussed by UK-India healthcare experts.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Shaw, said the endeavour should be to leverage innovation to develop therapies which are affordable and accessible in making the medicines of tomorrow,

“As global priorities shift from providing exclusive and expensive drugs to more affordable drugs to enhance access to greater patient populations, we need to focus on developing blockbuster drugs with a potential to benefit a billion patients,” said Dr. Shaw.

UK Trade and Investment department has been working on a global “Making Tomorrow’s Medicine” campaign that includes supporting selected countries for creating medicines in future using innovation.

The event was also attended by Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan and Secretary in Department of Biotechnology K Vijay Raghavan.