Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday held a discussion with India’s biopharma and biotechnology startups on key challenges and ways to unlock new opportunities for growth in the sector.
The minister indicated that the government is looking at the need for coordinated action to simplify regulatory processes, improve access to funding, expedite patent approvals, and strengthen indigenous procurement and research infrastructure to boost startups.
“Stronger collaboration between government, industry and research institutions will help innovative startups scale and contribute to India’s growing bioeconomy,” he said.
India’s bioeconomy has expanded from about $10 billion in 2014 to over $195 billion in 2025, reflecting a massive growth trajectory over the past decade. The sector has recorded an annual growth of around 17–18 per cent in the last year alone, rising from approximately $165 billion to $195 billion, marking India’s emergence as a major global biotechnology hub, according to the India BioEconomy Report (IBER 2026).
India is steadily moving towards its target of a $300 billion bioeconomy by 2030, supported by a strong base of scientists, entrepreneurs, and startups.
The IBER 2026 report has highlighted that India’s bioeconomy contributes around 4.8 per cent to the national GDP, with a strong CAGR of nearly 18 per cent. The sector has more than doubled in size since 2020 and is supported by over 11,800 biotech startups across the country.
The Centre’s BioE3 Policy (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment, and Employment) is a major step towards strengthening bio-based industries and sustainable biomanufacturing. The policy aims to promote innovation in areas such as precision biotherapeutics, smart proteins, climate-resilient agriculture, bio-based chemicals, and carbon capture technologies. Goyal added that BIRAC is facilitating this transformation by building shared infrastructure such as bio foundries, Bio-AI hubs and advanced biomanufacturing platforms.
The government has also set up a Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) Fund with an outlay of Rs 1 lakh crore, under which BIRAC has been assigned a key role in supporting biotechnology ventures. This initiative aims to channel long-term investment into projects ready for scale-up and technology translation, strengthening India’s deep-tech ecosystem.
-IANS
