Ahmedabad: While the state is often termed the ‘pharmacy of India’ due to a mature ecosystem of pharmaceuticals in terms of both education and industry, Gujarat has the potential to become a biotechnology powerhouse, indicates a report by the Gujarat Rajya Institution for Transformation (GRIT), a think tank of Govt of Gujarat. The recently released report ‘Gujarat Bioeconomy 2030: Strategic Skill Architecture and Workforce Development’ charts a course for the future of bioeconomy and how education needs an overhaul to achieve that goal.Experts called for a department of biotechnology (DBT) institution in the state and also advocated for making the Gujarat Biotechnology University (GBU) or Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC) an institution of national importance to give impetus to the sector. “Based on an exhaustive analysis of 23 relatable biotechnology institutes within the state, comparative benchmarking with states, and an assessment of global industry trends, this document identifies a possible synergy between academic output and industrial requirement,” reads the report. It adds, “Unlike Hyderabad or Bangalore, which are anchored by DBT-funded autonomous institutes that drive innovation and high-level skilling, Gujarat doesn’t have a central, federally funded node for biotechnology research excellence.” The report goes on to say, “This want cascades down to the curriculum level where syllabi remain theoretical, slanted towards classical microbiology and biochemistry, while the industry pivots towards synthetic biology, metabolic engineering and AI-driven drug discovery.” The primary focus of the report is on strategies for overhauling. Firstly, curriculum modernization is proposed with the introduction of specialized BTech and MTech modules in synthetic biology, bioprocess engineering, and computational biology. The report calls for institutional alignment with a state-backed centre of excellence (COE) to bridge the research-training gap. It calls for vocational momentum by leveraging Life Sciences Sector Skill Development Council (LSSSDC) frameworks to launch industrial ‘finishing schools’ that function as bridges between the classroom and the factory floor.
