Bengaluru houses a national body to drive biomedical innovation | India News



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BENGALURU: Two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged India to be self-sufficient, Atmanirbhar, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has formed a new national body, the National Consortium for Indigenization of Biomedical Resources (N-BRIC) with the mandate to drive indigenous innovation.
Constituted as a Public Private Association (PPP) focused on the development of reagents, diagnoses, vaccines and therapies for Covid-19, the consortium will be based at the Center for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (CCAMP).
In confirming the development to TOI, Taslimarif Saiyed, CCAMP CEO and Director, said that CCAMP will be the lead institute and the governing council that will oversee the initiative will be chaired by Biocon CMD Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.
Claiming that N-BRIC aims to provide a collaborative platform to build indigenous biomedical resources towards a self-sufficient biotech ecosystem, Saiyed added that Covid-19 is only the starting point and that the initiative hopes to provide solutions beyond this pandemic and help India become self-sufficient in the sector.
Dr. Renu Swarup, secretary, DBT said: “To satisfy our biotechnological and biomedical needs, the country needs to be self-sufficient for the manufacture of products and also the components, reagents, resources throughout the product development chain, N-BRIC It brings together academia, industry, new companies and MSMEs to serve not only the country but the world. ”
He added that this was a good start to meet the challenges of Covid-19 and that DBT hopes to expand this to include all required resources, platforms and facilities.
Saiyed, also coordinator of N-BRIC, said: “During these difficult times, we have realized the great need for biomedical resources for the health system and the research community. This consortium, a converging platform for all stakeholders, is a major DBT effort, conceptualized by the DBT secretary to address this need across the country and promote indigenous development and manufacturing. ”
While Shaw did not respond to TOI calls, a CCAMP statement quoted her as saying the consortium is of immense national importance at a time of an unprecedented global health emergency. “This will allow us to synergize and optimize the latent capabilities we have in the pyramid of academic research labs, startups, MSMEs and large companies to deliver innovative solutions at scale for India and the world. I commend Dr. Renu Swarup for spearheading this vital initiative, ”Shaw said.

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