Biotechnology in India | Science & Technology for UPSC 2024 (Pre & Mains) PDF Download

 Page 1


 
Biotechnology in India 
•The Indian Biotechnology sector is gaining global visibility and is being tracked for emerging investment 
opportunities. Human capital is perceived to be the key driver for global competitiveness. Added to this 
is a decreasing appetite for risk capital in developed countries, which has led to a decline in the 
biotechnology sector in these regions where survival lifelines are being provided by the lower cost 
research environs of the developing world such as India 
•In the span of a decade beginning in 2007, he industry has grown exponentially in size from about $2 
billion to over $11 billion in terms of revenue.  
•
By 2025, it is targeted to touch $100 billion. These outcomes have been the result of years of concerted 
efforts by the Indian government to enable the growth of the industry. As early as 1986, Rajiv Gandhi, 
recognising the potential of biotechnology in the country's development, set up the Department of 
Biotechnology, making India one of the ?rst countries in the world to have a government department 
solely dedicated to biotechnology  
•
As of 2016, India had over a thousand biotechnology start-ups (Australia has a total of 470 
biotechnology companies). More than half of these start-ups are involved in healthcare — drugs, medical 
devices and diagnostics — while about 14 per cent are in agricultural biotechnology and about 18 per 
cent in biotechnology services 
•
The Indian economy also has a distinct advantage with respect to its demography that can ensure 
sustained growth for the sector. n effective utilisation of this demographic advantage will provide India a 
competitive edge over all other emerging economies in the advancement of biotechnological research 
and development 
•Biotechnology can deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and even more 
pervasive than that brought about by IT. Employment generation, intellectual wealth creation, expanding 
entrepreneurial opportunities, augmenting industrial growth are a few of the compelling factors that 
warrant a focused approach for this sector 
1. Agriculture & Allied activities 
•
The industry has been impacting Indian lives long before it grew so much in size. Back in the mid-1960s, 
advancements in biotechnology drove the Green Revolution, which enhanced farm yields and made the 
country self-suf?cient in food production 
•A similar contribution from the sector was witnessed in the White Revolution when India became a milk-
surplus nation and improved the nutrition level of its citizens 
•
Biotechnology is necessary to maintain our agriculture competitive and remunerative and to achieve 
nutrition security in the face of major challenges such as  
?declining per capita availability of arable land 
?lower productivity of crops, livestock and ?sheries 
? heavy production losses due to biotic (insects pests, weeds) and abiotic (salinity, drought, alkalinity) 
stresses  
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
!
Page 2


 
Biotechnology in India 
•The Indian Biotechnology sector is gaining global visibility and is being tracked for emerging investment 
opportunities. Human capital is perceived to be the key driver for global competitiveness. Added to this 
is a decreasing appetite for risk capital in developed countries, which has led to a decline in the 
biotechnology sector in these regions where survival lifelines are being provided by the lower cost 
research environs of the developing world such as India 
•In the span of a decade beginning in 2007, he industry has grown exponentially in size from about $2 
billion to over $11 billion in terms of revenue.  
•
By 2025, it is targeted to touch $100 billion. These outcomes have been the result of years of concerted 
efforts by the Indian government to enable the growth of the industry. As early as 1986, Rajiv Gandhi, 
recognising the potential of biotechnology in the country's development, set up the Department of 
Biotechnology, making India one of the ?rst countries in the world to have a government department 
solely dedicated to biotechnology  
•
As of 2016, India had over a thousand biotechnology start-ups (Australia has a total of 470 
biotechnology companies). More than half of these start-ups are involved in healthcare — drugs, medical 
devices and diagnostics — while about 14 per cent are in agricultural biotechnology and about 18 per 
cent in biotechnology services 
•
The Indian economy also has a distinct advantage with respect to its demography that can ensure 
sustained growth for the sector. n effective utilisation of this demographic advantage will provide India a 
competitive edge over all other emerging economies in the advancement of biotechnological research 
and development 
•Biotechnology can deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and even more 
pervasive than that brought about by IT. Employment generation, intellectual wealth creation, expanding 
entrepreneurial opportunities, augmenting industrial growth are a few of the compelling factors that 
warrant a focused approach for this sector 
1. Agriculture & Allied activities 
•
The industry has been impacting Indian lives long before it grew so much in size. Back in the mid-1960s, 
advancements in biotechnology drove the Green Revolution, which enhanced farm yields and made the 
country self-suf?cient in food production 
•A similar contribution from the sector was witnessed in the White Revolution when India became a milk-
surplus nation and improved the nutrition level of its citizens 
•
Biotechnology is necessary to maintain our agriculture competitive and remunerative and to achieve 
nutrition security in the face of major challenges such as  
?declining per capita availability of arable land 
?lower productivity of crops, livestock and ?sheries 
? heavy production losses due to biotic (insects pests, weeds) and abiotic (salinity, drought, alkalinity) 
stresses  
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?heavy post-harvest crop damage 
?declining availability of water as an agricultural input. Investment in agricultural related 
biotechnology  
has resulted in signi?cantly enhanced R&D capability and institutional building over the years. 
However, progress has been rather slow in converting the research leads into usable products 
•The spectrum of biotechnology application in agriculture is very wide and includes  
?generation of improved crops, animals, plants of agro forestry importance microbes 
?use of molecular markers to tag genes of interest 
?accelerating of breeding through marker–assisted selection  
??ngerprinting of cultivars, land raises, germplasm stocks 
?DNA based diagnostics for pests/pathogens of crops, farm animals and ?sh 
?assessment and monitoring of bio diversity; in vitro mass multiplication of elite planting material 
?embryo transfer technology for animal breeding; food and feed biotechnology 
?Plants and animals are being used for the production of therapeutically or industrially useful 
products, the emphasis being on improving ef?ciency and lowering the cost of production.  
?Nutrition and balanced diet are emerging to be important health promotional strategies. 
Biotechnology has a critical role in developing and processing value added products of enhanced 
nutritive quality and providing tools for ensuring and monitoring food quality and safety 
•It has been estimated that if biofertilizers were used to substitute only 25% of chemical fertilizers on just 
50% of India’s crops the potential would be 2,35,000 MT. T oday about 13,000 MT of Biofertilizers are 
used – only 0.36% of the total fertilizer use 
?Biopesticides have fared slightly better with 2.5% share of the total pesticide market of 2700 crores 
and an annual growth rate of 10-15 % 
•In spite of the obvious advantages, several constraints have limited their wider usage such as products of 
inconsistent quality, short shelf life, sensitivity to drought, temperature, and agronomic conditions 
•Livestock 
?The technology can be used to enhance fertility and reproductive performance, improved quality, 
resistance to diseases for reduced drug use, production of therapeutically useful products and 
quality feed 
•
Aquaculture and marine biotechnology 
?Application of biotechnology would be crucial in disease resistance, enhanced productivity, fertility 
and reproductive growth, use of aquatic species as bioreactors for production of industrial 
products, value added products from sea weeds and other marine taxa and biosensors for pollution 
monitoring. Species of priority in ?sheries would be carps, tiger shrimps and fresh water prawns. It 
is proposed to set up under the auspices of DBT and autonomous centre for marine biotechnology 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
!
Page 3


 
Biotechnology in India 
•The Indian Biotechnology sector is gaining global visibility and is being tracked for emerging investment 
opportunities. Human capital is perceived to be the key driver for global competitiveness. Added to this 
is a decreasing appetite for risk capital in developed countries, which has led to a decline in the 
biotechnology sector in these regions where survival lifelines are being provided by the lower cost 
research environs of the developing world such as India 
•In the span of a decade beginning in 2007, he industry has grown exponentially in size from about $2 
billion to over $11 billion in terms of revenue.  
•
By 2025, it is targeted to touch $100 billion. These outcomes have been the result of years of concerted 
efforts by the Indian government to enable the growth of the industry. As early as 1986, Rajiv Gandhi, 
recognising the potential of biotechnology in the country's development, set up the Department of 
Biotechnology, making India one of the ?rst countries in the world to have a government department 
solely dedicated to biotechnology  
•
As of 2016, India had over a thousand biotechnology start-ups (Australia has a total of 470 
biotechnology companies). More than half of these start-ups are involved in healthcare — drugs, medical 
devices and diagnostics — while about 14 per cent are in agricultural biotechnology and about 18 per 
cent in biotechnology services 
•
The Indian economy also has a distinct advantage with respect to its demography that can ensure 
sustained growth for the sector. n effective utilisation of this demographic advantage will provide India a 
competitive edge over all other emerging economies in the advancement of biotechnological research 
and development 
•Biotechnology can deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and even more 
pervasive than that brought about by IT. Employment generation, intellectual wealth creation, expanding 
entrepreneurial opportunities, augmenting industrial growth are a few of the compelling factors that 
warrant a focused approach for this sector 
1. Agriculture & Allied activities 
•
The industry has been impacting Indian lives long before it grew so much in size. Back in the mid-1960s, 
advancements in biotechnology drove the Green Revolution, which enhanced farm yields and made the 
country self-suf?cient in food production 
•A similar contribution from the sector was witnessed in the White Revolution when India became a milk-
surplus nation and improved the nutrition level of its citizens 
•
Biotechnology is necessary to maintain our agriculture competitive and remunerative and to achieve 
nutrition security in the face of major challenges such as  
?declining per capita availability of arable land 
?lower productivity of crops, livestock and ?sheries 
? heavy production losses due to biotic (insects pests, weeds) and abiotic (salinity, drought, alkalinity) 
stresses  
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?heavy post-harvest crop damage 
?declining availability of water as an agricultural input. Investment in agricultural related 
biotechnology  
has resulted in signi?cantly enhanced R&D capability and institutional building over the years. 
However, progress has been rather slow in converting the research leads into usable products 
•The spectrum of biotechnology application in agriculture is very wide and includes  
?generation of improved crops, animals, plants of agro forestry importance microbes 
?use of molecular markers to tag genes of interest 
?accelerating of breeding through marker–assisted selection  
??ngerprinting of cultivars, land raises, germplasm stocks 
?DNA based diagnostics for pests/pathogens of crops, farm animals and ?sh 
?assessment and monitoring of bio diversity; in vitro mass multiplication of elite planting material 
?embryo transfer technology for animal breeding; food and feed biotechnology 
?Plants and animals are being used for the production of therapeutically or industrially useful 
products, the emphasis being on improving ef?ciency and lowering the cost of production.  
?Nutrition and balanced diet are emerging to be important health promotional strategies. 
Biotechnology has a critical role in developing and processing value added products of enhanced 
nutritive quality and providing tools for ensuring and monitoring food quality and safety 
•It has been estimated that if biofertilizers were used to substitute only 25% of chemical fertilizers on just 
50% of India’s crops the potential would be 2,35,000 MT. T oday about 13,000 MT of Biofertilizers are 
used – only 0.36% of the total fertilizer use 
?Biopesticides have fared slightly better with 2.5% share of the total pesticide market of 2700 crores 
and an annual growth rate of 10-15 % 
•In spite of the obvious advantages, several constraints have limited their wider usage such as products of 
inconsistent quality, short shelf life, sensitivity to drought, temperature, and agronomic conditions 
•Livestock 
?The technology can be used to enhance fertility and reproductive performance, improved quality, 
resistance to diseases for reduced drug use, production of therapeutically useful products and 
quality feed 
•
Aquaculture and marine biotechnology 
?Application of biotechnology would be crucial in disease resistance, enhanced productivity, fertility 
and reproductive growth, use of aquatic species as bioreactors for production of industrial 
products, value added products from sea weeds and other marine taxa and biosensors for pollution 
monitoring. Species of priority in ?sheries would be carps, tiger shrimps and fresh water prawns. It 
is proposed to set up under the auspices of DBT and autonomous centre for marine biotechnology 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
•Food and nutrition 
?Development of biotechnology tools for evaluating food safety, development of rapid diagnostic kits 
for detection of various food borne pathogens; development of analogical methods for detection of 
genetically modi?ed foods and products derived there from; development of nutraceuticals/health 
food supplements/functional foods for holistic health; development of pre-cooked, ready-to-eat, 
nutritionally forti?ed food for school going children; development of suitable pro-biotics for 
therapeutic purposes and development of bio food additives 
•
Biofertilisers and Biopesticides 
?Screening of elite strains of micros-organisms and/or productions of super-strains, better 
understanding of the dynamics of symbiotic nitrogen ?xation, process optimization for fermentor–
based technologies, improved shelf life, better quality standards, setting up accredited quality 
control laboratories and standardization of GMP guidelines. Integrated nutrient management 
system would be further strengthened 
2. Bioresources 
The combined annual global market for the products derived from bioresources is roughly between US$ 500 
billion and US$ 800 billion. India is one of the 12 global mega biodiversity centres harbouring approximately 
8% of the global biodiversity existing in only 2.4% of the land area. The country is also home to two of the 
world’s 25 hotspots. The varied cultural diversity across the country as well as a very ancient traditional 
knowledge system associated with the biodiversity represents added assets 
Nonetheless, much of this biodiversity is in peril owing, in the main, to anthropogenic causes. Thus, if the goal 
of converting our bioresources - animal, plant, microbial and marine - into commercially useful products and 
processes is to be realized, we need to not only conserve the biodiversity and but also utilize it in a 
sustainable manner. In this context, absence of a good quantitative information network on bioresources 
combining remote-sensing data and ground surveys is a major constraint. The situation is even worse for 
microorganisms. Field- and marine biologists rarely work with molecular scientists and chemists, 
pharmacologists or other experts, and there is practically no bioprospecting industry. While our traditional 
knowledge base would be the starting for bioprospecting, ethics and equity should be our guiding principles 
in bene?t sharing 
•Animal resources 
?India is home to an estimated 86,874 species of animals accounting for 7.25% of global animal 
diversity. The degree of endemism is high and populations of several animal groups are diminishing 
due to habitat destruction and poaching
?Several species, their products and the services rendered by them are crucial to our economic well-
being: pollination services by insects (e.g., honey bees, bumble bees, moths, butter?ies, beetles, ?ies) 
to our agricultural and forestry crops, honey, silk, lac, musk, skins are just a few examples 
?Biotechnology can be effectively employed for molecular characterization along with bioscreens in 
search of useful products. Utilization of selected species as bioreactors for production of complex 
proteins is another important opportunity 
•Plant resources 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
!
Page 4


 
Biotechnology in India 
•The Indian Biotechnology sector is gaining global visibility and is being tracked for emerging investment 
opportunities. Human capital is perceived to be the key driver for global competitiveness. Added to this 
is a decreasing appetite for risk capital in developed countries, which has led to a decline in the 
biotechnology sector in these regions where survival lifelines are being provided by the lower cost 
research environs of the developing world such as India 
•In the span of a decade beginning in 2007, he industry has grown exponentially in size from about $2 
billion to over $11 billion in terms of revenue.  
•
By 2025, it is targeted to touch $100 billion. These outcomes have been the result of years of concerted 
efforts by the Indian government to enable the growth of the industry. As early as 1986, Rajiv Gandhi, 
recognising the potential of biotechnology in the country's development, set up the Department of 
Biotechnology, making India one of the ?rst countries in the world to have a government department 
solely dedicated to biotechnology  
•
As of 2016, India had over a thousand biotechnology start-ups (Australia has a total of 470 
biotechnology companies). More than half of these start-ups are involved in healthcare — drugs, medical 
devices and diagnostics — while about 14 per cent are in agricultural biotechnology and about 18 per 
cent in biotechnology services 
•
The Indian economy also has a distinct advantage with respect to its demography that can ensure 
sustained growth for the sector. n effective utilisation of this demographic advantage will provide India a 
competitive edge over all other emerging economies in the advancement of biotechnological research 
and development 
•Biotechnology can deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and even more 
pervasive than that brought about by IT. Employment generation, intellectual wealth creation, expanding 
entrepreneurial opportunities, augmenting industrial growth are a few of the compelling factors that 
warrant a focused approach for this sector 
1. Agriculture & Allied activities 
•
The industry has been impacting Indian lives long before it grew so much in size. Back in the mid-1960s, 
advancements in biotechnology drove the Green Revolution, which enhanced farm yields and made the 
country self-suf?cient in food production 
•A similar contribution from the sector was witnessed in the White Revolution when India became a milk-
surplus nation and improved the nutrition level of its citizens 
•
Biotechnology is necessary to maintain our agriculture competitive and remunerative and to achieve 
nutrition security in the face of major challenges such as  
?declining per capita availability of arable land 
?lower productivity of crops, livestock and ?sheries 
? heavy production losses due to biotic (insects pests, weeds) and abiotic (salinity, drought, alkalinity) 
stresses  
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?heavy post-harvest crop damage 
?declining availability of water as an agricultural input. Investment in agricultural related 
biotechnology  
has resulted in signi?cantly enhanced R&D capability and institutional building over the years. 
However, progress has been rather slow in converting the research leads into usable products 
•The spectrum of biotechnology application in agriculture is very wide and includes  
?generation of improved crops, animals, plants of agro forestry importance microbes 
?use of molecular markers to tag genes of interest 
?accelerating of breeding through marker–assisted selection  
??ngerprinting of cultivars, land raises, germplasm stocks 
?DNA based diagnostics for pests/pathogens of crops, farm animals and ?sh 
?assessment and monitoring of bio diversity; in vitro mass multiplication of elite planting material 
?embryo transfer technology for animal breeding; food and feed biotechnology 
?Plants and animals are being used for the production of therapeutically or industrially useful 
products, the emphasis being on improving ef?ciency and lowering the cost of production.  
?Nutrition and balanced diet are emerging to be important health promotional strategies. 
Biotechnology has a critical role in developing and processing value added products of enhanced 
nutritive quality and providing tools for ensuring and monitoring food quality and safety 
•It has been estimated that if biofertilizers were used to substitute only 25% of chemical fertilizers on just 
50% of India’s crops the potential would be 2,35,000 MT. T oday about 13,000 MT of Biofertilizers are 
used – only 0.36% of the total fertilizer use 
?Biopesticides have fared slightly better with 2.5% share of the total pesticide market of 2700 crores 
and an annual growth rate of 10-15 % 
•In spite of the obvious advantages, several constraints have limited their wider usage such as products of 
inconsistent quality, short shelf life, sensitivity to drought, temperature, and agronomic conditions 
•Livestock 
?The technology can be used to enhance fertility and reproductive performance, improved quality, 
resistance to diseases for reduced drug use, production of therapeutically useful products and 
quality feed 
•
Aquaculture and marine biotechnology 
?Application of biotechnology would be crucial in disease resistance, enhanced productivity, fertility 
and reproductive growth, use of aquatic species as bioreactors for production of industrial 
products, value added products from sea weeds and other marine taxa and biosensors for pollution 
monitoring. Species of priority in ?sheries would be carps, tiger shrimps and fresh water prawns. It 
is proposed to set up under the auspices of DBT and autonomous centre for marine biotechnology 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
•Food and nutrition 
?Development of biotechnology tools for evaluating food safety, development of rapid diagnostic kits 
for detection of various food borne pathogens; development of analogical methods for detection of 
genetically modi?ed foods and products derived there from; development of nutraceuticals/health 
food supplements/functional foods for holistic health; development of pre-cooked, ready-to-eat, 
nutritionally forti?ed food for school going children; development of suitable pro-biotics for 
therapeutic purposes and development of bio food additives 
•
Biofertilisers and Biopesticides 
?Screening of elite strains of micros-organisms and/or productions of super-strains, better 
understanding of the dynamics of symbiotic nitrogen ?xation, process optimization for fermentor–
based technologies, improved shelf life, better quality standards, setting up accredited quality 
control laboratories and standardization of GMP guidelines. Integrated nutrient management 
system would be further strengthened 
2. Bioresources 
The combined annual global market for the products derived from bioresources is roughly between US$ 500 
billion and US$ 800 billion. India is one of the 12 global mega biodiversity centres harbouring approximately 
8% of the global biodiversity existing in only 2.4% of the land area. The country is also home to two of the 
world’s 25 hotspots. The varied cultural diversity across the country as well as a very ancient traditional 
knowledge system associated with the biodiversity represents added assets 
Nonetheless, much of this biodiversity is in peril owing, in the main, to anthropogenic causes. Thus, if the goal 
of converting our bioresources - animal, plant, microbial and marine - into commercially useful products and 
processes is to be realized, we need to not only conserve the biodiversity and but also utilize it in a 
sustainable manner. In this context, absence of a good quantitative information network on bioresources 
combining remote-sensing data and ground surveys is a major constraint. The situation is even worse for 
microorganisms. Field- and marine biologists rarely work with molecular scientists and chemists, 
pharmacologists or other experts, and there is practically no bioprospecting industry. While our traditional 
knowledge base would be the starting for bioprospecting, ethics and equity should be our guiding principles 
in bene?t sharing 
•Animal resources 
?India is home to an estimated 86,874 species of animals accounting for 7.25% of global animal 
diversity. The degree of endemism is high and populations of several animal groups are diminishing 
due to habitat destruction and poaching
?Several species, their products and the services rendered by them are crucial to our economic well-
being: pollination services by insects (e.g., honey bees, bumble bees, moths, butter?ies, beetles, ?ies) 
to our agricultural and forestry crops, honey, silk, lac, musk, skins are just a few examples 
?Biotechnology can be effectively employed for molecular characterization along with bioscreens in 
search of useful products. Utilization of selected species as bioreactors for production of complex 
proteins is another important opportunity 
•Plant resources 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?India has a huge treasure of plant resources with over 45,000 known species representing 11% of 
earth’s ?ora. In terms of ?owering plant diversity alone, India ranks tenth in the world. About 33% of 
?owering plants and 29% of total plants are endemic to the country. Genetic erosion is rampant and 
conservation is a priority 
?Prospecting of wild plant resources using molecular approaches and mechanism-based screening 
should be used to identify novel genes (temperature, drought, salinity tolerant) and gene products 
(therapeutic compounds, dyes, essential oils, biocontrol agents, gums resins and taxmins) 
?There are potential ornamentals, including foliage – and ?ower – bearing plants that could be 
bulked up to be subsequently cultivated on large scale for domestic and international trade 
?Biotechnology can contribute substantially in providing cost-effective therapeutically active 
biomolecules through target/mechanism – based screens, biotransformation, metabolic engineering 
and transgenic approaches. Biotechnology should also be utilized to add value to our traditional 
knowledge especially Ayurveda, Sidha and Unani systems as well as tribal and folk medicine. 
Medicinal plants are also the prime targets of bioprospecting. Besides, the tools of biotechnology 
can be used for conservation and characterization of plants 
?Biofuels are renewable and can supplement hydrocarbon fuels, assist in their conservation as well 
as mitigate their adverse effects on the climate. Bioethanol and biodiesel are fast becoming popular 
in many countries. While bio-ethanol (called ethanol) is produced from raw materials such as 
molasses, beet, sugarcane juice, grains and tubers, biodiesel is produced from oil (derived from oil-
bearing seeds such as Jatropha crucas, Pongamia pinnata i.e. karanja) 
?
India imports nearly 70% of its annual crude petroleum requirements  
? It is estimated that 75% of the increase in world demand for oil will come from transport. 
India’s transport sector will consume ever-higher amounts of fuel over the coming years. Being 
one of the largest producers of agro products, including sugarcane, India should take a lead in 
this worldwide effort at promoting sustainable development 
•Microbial resources 
?Currently only ?ve percent microbes are culturable but there are others of considerable potential 
value that need to be characterized by new and novel techniques. The ?ve percent culturable 
microbes have been a source of valuable products 
?The underlying can be done on a priority basis by using biotechnology—preparation of inventories 
based on primary and secondary data; exploration of micro ?ora in the north-eastern region of the 
country, and extreme habitats (hydrothermal vents, deep sea sediments, highly acidic, alkaline and 
anaerobic regions, degraded ecosystems etc.) for discovery of novel bioactive molecules; and study, 
characterization and screening of uncultivable microbes through appropriate molecular approaches 
•
Marine resources 
?The economic zone of the sea as a source of novel genes and gene products - biopolymers, novel 
enzymes, new therapeutic leads, and other value-added products such as osmo-tolerant crops – has 
hardly been explored. Marine organisms also present immense potential as biosensors for pollution 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
!
Page 5


 
Biotechnology in India 
•The Indian Biotechnology sector is gaining global visibility and is being tracked for emerging investment 
opportunities. Human capital is perceived to be the key driver for global competitiveness. Added to this 
is a decreasing appetite for risk capital in developed countries, which has led to a decline in the 
biotechnology sector in these regions where survival lifelines are being provided by the lower cost 
research environs of the developing world such as India 
•In the span of a decade beginning in 2007, he industry has grown exponentially in size from about $2 
billion to over $11 billion in terms of revenue.  
•
By 2025, it is targeted to touch $100 billion. These outcomes have been the result of years of concerted 
efforts by the Indian government to enable the growth of the industry. As early as 1986, Rajiv Gandhi, 
recognising the potential of biotechnology in the country's development, set up the Department of 
Biotechnology, making India one of the ?rst countries in the world to have a government department 
solely dedicated to biotechnology  
•
As of 2016, India had over a thousand biotechnology start-ups (Australia has a total of 470 
biotechnology companies). More than half of these start-ups are involved in healthcare — drugs, medical 
devices and diagnostics — while about 14 per cent are in agricultural biotechnology and about 18 per 
cent in biotechnology services 
•
The Indian economy also has a distinct advantage with respect to its demography that can ensure 
sustained growth for the sector. n effective utilisation of this demographic advantage will provide India a 
competitive edge over all other emerging economies in the advancement of biotechnological research 
and development 
•Biotechnology can deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and even more 
pervasive than that brought about by IT. Employment generation, intellectual wealth creation, expanding 
entrepreneurial opportunities, augmenting industrial growth are a few of the compelling factors that 
warrant a focused approach for this sector 
1. Agriculture & Allied activities 
•
The industry has been impacting Indian lives long before it grew so much in size. Back in the mid-1960s, 
advancements in biotechnology drove the Green Revolution, which enhanced farm yields and made the 
country self-suf?cient in food production 
•A similar contribution from the sector was witnessed in the White Revolution when India became a milk-
surplus nation and improved the nutrition level of its citizens 
•
Biotechnology is necessary to maintain our agriculture competitive and remunerative and to achieve 
nutrition security in the face of major challenges such as  
?declining per capita availability of arable land 
?lower productivity of crops, livestock and ?sheries 
? heavy production losses due to biotic (insects pests, weeds) and abiotic (salinity, drought, alkalinity) 
stresses  
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?heavy post-harvest crop damage 
?declining availability of water as an agricultural input. Investment in agricultural related 
biotechnology  
has resulted in signi?cantly enhanced R&D capability and institutional building over the years. 
However, progress has been rather slow in converting the research leads into usable products 
•The spectrum of biotechnology application in agriculture is very wide and includes  
?generation of improved crops, animals, plants of agro forestry importance microbes 
?use of molecular markers to tag genes of interest 
?accelerating of breeding through marker–assisted selection  
??ngerprinting of cultivars, land raises, germplasm stocks 
?DNA based diagnostics for pests/pathogens of crops, farm animals and ?sh 
?assessment and monitoring of bio diversity; in vitro mass multiplication of elite planting material 
?embryo transfer technology for animal breeding; food and feed biotechnology 
?Plants and animals are being used for the production of therapeutically or industrially useful 
products, the emphasis being on improving ef?ciency and lowering the cost of production.  
?Nutrition and balanced diet are emerging to be important health promotional strategies. 
Biotechnology has a critical role in developing and processing value added products of enhanced 
nutritive quality and providing tools for ensuring and monitoring food quality and safety 
•It has been estimated that if biofertilizers were used to substitute only 25% of chemical fertilizers on just 
50% of India’s crops the potential would be 2,35,000 MT. T oday about 13,000 MT of Biofertilizers are 
used – only 0.36% of the total fertilizer use 
?Biopesticides have fared slightly better with 2.5% share of the total pesticide market of 2700 crores 
and an annual growth rate of 10-15 % 
•In spite of the obvious advantages, several constraints have limited their wider usage such as products of 
inconsistent quality, short shelf life, sensitivity to drought, temperature, and agronomic conditions 
•Livestock 
?The technology can be used to enhance fertility and reproductive performance, improved quality, 
resistance to diseases for reduced drug use, production of therapeutically useful products and 
quality feed 
•
Aquaculture and marine biotechnology 
?Application of biotechnology would be crucial in disease resistance, enhanced productivity, fertility 
and reproductive growth, use of aquatic species as bioreactors for production of industrial 
products, value added products from sea weeds and other marine taxa and biosensors for pollution 
monitoring. Species of priority in ?sheries would be carps, tiger shrimps and fresh water prawns. It 
is proposed to set up under the auspices of DBT and autonomous centre for marine biotechnology 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
•Food and nutrition 
?Development of biotechnology tools for evaluating food safety, development of rapid diagnostic kits 
for detection of various food borne pathogens; development of analogical methods for detection of 
genetically modi?ed foods and products derived there from; development of nutraceuticals/health 
food supplements/functional foods for holistic health; development of pre-cooked, ready-to-eat, 
nutritionally forti?ed food for school going children; development of suitable pro-biotics for 
therapeutic purposes and development of bio food additives 
•
Biofertilisers and Biopesticides 
?Screening of elite strains of micros-organisms and/or productions of super-strains, better 
understanding of the dynamics of symbiotic nitrogen ?xation, process optimization for fermentor–
based technologies, improved shelf life, better quality standards, setting up accredited quality 
control laboratories and standardization of GMP guidelines. Integrated nutrient management 
system would be further strengthened 
2. Bioresources 
The combined annual global market for the products derived from bioresources is roughly between US$ 500 
billion and US$ 800 billion. India is one of the 12 global mega biodiversity centres harbouring approximately 
8% of the global biodiversity existing in only 2.4% of the land area. The country is also home to two of the 
world’s 25 hotspots. The varied cultural diversity across the country as well as a very ancient traditional 
knowledge system associated with the biodiversity represents added assets 
Nonetheless, much of this biodiversity is in peril owing, in the main, to anthropogenic causes. Thus, if the goal 
of converting our bioresources - animal, plant, microbial and marine - into commercially useful products and 
processes is to be realized, we need to not only conserve the biodiversity and but also utilize it in a 
sustainable manner. In this context, absence of a good quantitative information network on bioresources 
combining remote-sensing data and ground surveys is a major constraint. The situation is even worse for 
microorganisms. Field- and marine biologists rarely work with molecular scientists and chemists, 
pharmacologists or other experts, and there is practically no bioprospecting industry. While our traditional 
knowledge base would be the starting for bioprospecting, ethics and equity should be our guiding principles 
in bene?t sharing 
•Animal resources 
?India is home to an estimated 86,874 species of animals accounting for 7.25% of global animal 
diversity. The degree of endemism is high and populations of several animal groups are diminishing 
due to habitat destruction and poaching
?Several species, their products and the services rendered by them are crucial to our economic well-
being: pollination services by insects (e.g., honey bees, bumble bees, moths, butter?ies, beetles, ?ies) 
to our agricultural and forestry crops, honey, silk, lac, musk, skins are just a few examples 
?Biotechnology can be effectively employed for molecular characterization along with bioscreens in 
search of useful products. Utilization of selected species as bioreactors for production of complex 
proteins is another important opportunity 
•Plant resources 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
?India has a huge treasure of plant resources with over 45,000 known species representing 11% of 
earth’s ?ora. In terms of ?owering plant diversity alone, India ranks tenth in the world. About 33% of 
?owering plants and 29% of total plants are endemic to the country. Genetic erosion is rampant and 
conservation is a priority 
?Prospecting of wild plant resources using molecular approaches and mechanism-based screening 
should be used to identify novel genes (temperature, drought, salinity tolerant) and gene products 
(therapeutic compounds, dyes, essential oils, biocontrol agents, gums resins and taxmins) 
?There are potential ornamentals, including foliage – and ?ower – bearing plants that could be 
bulked up to be subsequently cultivated on large scale for domestic and international trade 
?Biotechnology can contribute substantially in providing cost-effective therapeutically active 
biomolecules through target/mechanism – based screens, biotransformation, metabolic engineering 
and transgenic approaches. Biotechnology should also be utilized to add value to our traditional 
knowledge especially Ayurveda, Sidha and Unani systems as well as tribal and folk medicine. 
Medicinal plants are also the prime targets of bioprospecting. Besides, the tools of biotechnology 
can be used for conservation and characterization of plants 
?Biofuels are renewable and can supplement hydrocarbon fuels, assist in their conservation as well 
as mitigate their adverse effects on the climate. Bioethanol and biodiesel are fast becoming popular 
in many countries. While bio-ethanol (called ethanol) is produced from raw materials such as 
molasses, beet, sugarcane juice, grains and tubers, biodiesel is produced from oil (derived from oil-
bearing seeds such as Jatropha crucas, Pongamia pinnata i.e. karanja) 
?
India imports nearly 70% of its annual crude petroleum requirements  
? It is estimated that 75% of the increase in world demand for oil will come from transport. 
India’s transport sector will consume ever-higher amounts of fuel over the coming years. Being 
one of the largest producers of agro products, including sugarcane, India should take a lead in 
this worldwide effort at promoting sustainable development 
•Microbial resources 
?Currently only ?ve percent microbes are culturable but there are others of considerable potential 
value that need to be characterized by new and novel techniques. The ?ve percent culturable 
microbes have been a source of valuable products 
?The underlying can be done on a priority basis by using biotechnology—preparation of inventories 
based on primary and secondary data; exploration of micro ?ora in the north-eastern region of the 
country, and extreme habitats (hydrothermal vents, deep sea sediments, highly acidic, alkaline and 
anaerobic regions, degraded ecosystems etc.) for discovery of novel bioactive molecules; and study, 
characterization and screening of uncultivable microbes through appropriate molecular approaches 
•
Marine resources 
?The economic zone of the sea as a source of novel genes and gene products - biopolymers, novel 
enzymes, new therapeutic leads, and other value-added products such as osmo-tolerant crops – has 
hardly been explored. Marine organisms also present immense potential as biosensors for pollution 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
! 
monitoring as well as bioreactors for production of novel products. Besides, the study of deep-sea 
organisms including marine microbes has tremendous implications for human health 
3. Environment 
•Biotechnology has tremendous potential for application to a wide variety of environmental issues 
including conservation and characterization of rare or endangered taxa, afforestation and reforestation. 
It can help in rapid monitoring of environmental pollution, eco- restoration of degraded sites such as 
mining spoil dumps, treatment of ef?uents discharged by industries (oil re?neries, dyeing and textile 
units, paper and pulp mills, tanneries, pesticide units etc.), treatment of solid waste, and so on. A number 
of technologies have already been generated and demonstrated in the country. ? •The goal of environmental biotechnology would be to provide cost-effective and clean alternatives for 
risk assessment and quality monitoring, eco-restoration of degraded habitats, conversion of toxic 
recalcitrant chemicals into harmless by- products, bioremediation of wastes, value-added products from 
biomass, control of biological invasion through biotechnological interventions, greener process 
technologies, and effective ex situ conservation strategies. These can be ful?lled through a deeper 
understanding - and engineering - of the metabolic pathways for degradation of toxicants, 
environmental genomics and proteomics, and other molecular techniques 
4. Industrial Biotechnology 
•
A third wave of biotechnology – industrial biotechnology – is strongly developing. Industrial 
biotechnology (also referred to as white biotechnology) uses biological systems for the production of 
useful chemical entities. This technology is mainly based on biocatalysis and fermentation technology in 
combination with recent breakthroughs in the forefront of molecular genetics and metabolic 
engineering. This new technology has developed into a main contributor to the so-called green 
chemistry, in which renewable resources such as sugars or vegetable oils are converted into a wide 
variety of chemical substances such as ?ne and bulk chemicals, pharmaceuticals, bio-colorants, solvents, 
bio-plastics, vitamins, food additives, bio-pesticides and bio-fuels such as bio-ethanol and bio-diesel. 
•
The application of industrial biotechnology offers signi?cant ecological advantages. Agricultural crops 
are used starting raw materials, instead of using fossil resources such as crude oil and gas. This 
technology consequently has a bene?cial effect on greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time 
supports the agricultural sector producing these raw materials. Industrial biotechnology frequently 
shows signi?cant performance bene?ts compared to conventional chemical technology 
5. Preventive & Therapeutic Medical Biotechnology 
•
Important contributors to the total disease bur den are infections like HIV -AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, 
respiratory infections and chronic diseases affecting the heart and blood vessels, neuro-psychiatric 
disorders, diabetes and cancer. It is important to synchronize the technology and products with the local 
needs of the health system and to facilitate technology diffusion into health practice 
•
Increasing knowledge about pathogen genomes and subtypes, host responses to infectious challenges, 
molecular determinants of virulence and protective immunity and novel understanding mechanisms 
underlying escaped immunity and ways to develop novel immunogens will guide development of 
www.YouTube.com/SleepyClasses 
www.SleepyClasses.com 
!