The central government is prioritizing the dual focus of the biotechnology sector towards embracing digital and green technologies. This approach aims to facilitate sustainable advancement and promote growth in a low-carbon economy. With biotechnology’s industrialization, there’s a surge of innovation, spotlighting precision bio-therapeutics and bio-based chemicals, including enzymes, as vital areas for research exploration.
Precision bio-therapeutics marks a groundbreaking shift in medical treatment, offering a more tailored and potent method of care. Driven by strides in genomics, bioinformatics, and big data, this field holds the promise of greatly enhancing treatment efficacy for numerous complex and rare diseases. Yet, it is imperative to address the hurdles of costs, intricacy, and ethical considerations to unleash its full potential in healthcare.
The adoption of these dual technologies is poised to propel India’s progress, lessen ecological damage, and tackle climate change complexities while securing economic development. Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary of the Department of Biotechnology, emphasized a strategy to intertwine financial resources with technology to fuel innovation and engender new prospects.
Digital technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), big data, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, blockchain, and 5G, can hasten India’s path to sustainable progress. Digital tools play a role in optimizing resource usage, minimizing waste, and enhancing decision-making, such as AI-led systems improving energy efficiency in industries and smart grids.
Digital frameworks support superior service provision, transparency, and engagement. Meanwhile, green technologies are crafted to decrease environmental impact and support a shift to a low-carbon economy. Green tech in waste management, like recycling and conversion of waste to energy, upholds a circular economic model where resources are reused, and waste is curtailed.
The government has initiated numerous programs supporting the dual focus on digital and green technologies, such as the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC). These initiatives aim to lower India’s carbon footprint, boost energy efficiency, and cultivate green technologies.
By weaving digital and green technologies together, India strives to meet its sustainable development targets (SDGs) and build a robust, low-carbon economy. Focusing on these dual pillars supports India’s overarching vision of becoming a global biotechnology leader. The progressive policies like the BioE3 policy target harnessing biotechnology’s potential to address broad challenges related to economic progress, environmental sustainability, and employment generation. Dr. Gokhale highlighted this during the recent BTS event, noting its emphasis on advanced bio-manufacturing capabilities to produce a wide array of products, from healthcare solutions to materials, via cutting-edge biotechnological methods.