2018 · GS Paper 3 · Q15 · 15 marks
Why is there so much activity in the field of biotechnology in our country? How has this activity benefitted the field of biopharma?
In short
Biotechnology activity has surged in India because of sustained state support through DBT and BIRAC, a start-up ecosystem, cheap skilled research and strong global demand. Biopharma has gained most: India supplies 55-60% of UNICEF's vaccine volume and has produced indigenous vaccines, biosimilars and CAR-T therapy.
Model answer
Ghissu Editorial · Verified 4 Oct 2026 · 289 words
Policy architecture
The Department of Biotechnology (1986), BIRAC (2012), the National Biopharma Mission (2017) and the BioE3 Policy (2024) fund research from lab to market.
Start-ups
BIRAC's BioNEST incubators have nurtured thousands of biotech start-ups, and the Bio-RIDE scheme (2024) extends that support.
Talent and cost
A large science workforce and low research costs draw firms such as Biocon and Syngene.
Demand pull
A heavy disease burden, expiring biologic patents and COVID-19 created domestic and export demand.
Vaccine leadership
India supplies 55-60% of UNICEF's vaccine volume (PIB, 2025), with indigenous Rotavac, Covaxin, ZyCoV-D and Cervavac.
Biosimilars
Biocon's trastuzumab biosimilar was the first approved by the US FDA (2017), cutting cancer-therapy costs.
Advanced therapies
NexCAR19 (2023), India's first indigenous CAR-T therapy, costs a fraction of the global price.
Industry scale
Biopharma earned about US$ 5.84 billion of pharma's US$ 56.97 billion turnover in 2024-25 (RIS).
Biopharma SHAKTI
Use the Budget 2026-27's Rs 10,000 crore initiative and 1,000 accredited trial sites to target 5% of the global market.
R&D and regulation
Raise R&D above 0.84% of GDP and equip CDSCO for faster biologic approvals.
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This chapter in the exam
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Question from the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) Examination 2018 paper. Answer written by Ghissu's engine and checked against our editorial standards. Found an error? Tell us and we correct it within 48 hours.