New Delhi, Feb 13: Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh launched the first national call for the BIRAC–RDI Fund today, boosting high-impact biotechnology innovations via the Government of India’s ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) initiative.
Dr. Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, and MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy, and Space, called it a shift to science-led growth, positioning India as an early mover in emerging tech. The event drew Dr. Vinod Paul (NITI Aayog), Dr. Rajesh S. Gokhale (DBT Secretary), Dr. Jitendra Kumar (BIRAC MD), DST/ANRF officials, industry leaders, VCs, and scientists.
He highlighted biotech’s rise: from policy hesitation to acceleration, with startups jumping from 50 in 2014 to over 11,000 now, and the bioeconomy surging from $8 billion then to $165.7 billion in 2024 (target: $300 billion by 2030, $1 trillion by 2047). Biotech will drive the next industrial revolution, akin to IT’s past role, spanning space biotech, plant/life sciences in orbit, and future space medicine.
Dr. Gokhale noted the fund supports high-risk, long-gestation research for biopharma, bio-manufacturing, bioenergy, blue economy, and biocomputation, aligning with BioE3 Policy to scale from lab to industry.
BIRAC, as second-level fund manager, will deploy ₹2,000 crore over five years (expandable), leveraging 100+ bio-incubators, 10 lakh sq ft space, and 15 lakh entrepreneurs.
Part of the July 2025-approved RDI initiative (launched November 2025 via ANRF/DST), it funds TRL-4 to TRL-9 via equity, convertibles, and debt.
Dr. Singh affirmed India’s readiness to lead global biotech transformation with science, entrepreneurship, and policy.
