Boehringer Ingelheim India, NIPER Hajipur sign MoU for research and education collaboration

Boehringer Ingelheim India and the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Hajipur have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance pharmaceutical research, education and innovation. The five-year collaboration aims to create pathways for researchers and students in Bihar and the wider region to engage with open science platforms, joint research initiatives and capability-building programmes.

The MoU was signed at the Department of Pharmaceuticals in the presence of Manoj Joshi (IAS), Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers. Also present were Dr Kinny Singh (IAS), Deputy Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, and Prof K. Ruckmani, Director, NIPER Hajipur. The agreement establishes a framework for collaboration in pharmaceutical technologies, drug delivery systems, joint research, academic exchange and capability-building programmes.

Under the MoU, Boehringer Ingelheim will provide access to opnMe, its open science portal, for researchers and faculty at NIPER Hajipur. Through opnMe, scientists can access pre-clinical tool compounds free of charge for research. Boehringer Ingelheim has shared more than 150 molecules with institutions in India through this platform, and the collaboration extends this access to eastern India.

The partnership aligns with the Government of India’s Viksit Bharat vision and the Biopharma SHAKTI initiative, a ₹10,000-crore programme announced in the Union Budget 2026–27. The initiative outlines a role for NIPERs in translational research and pharmaceutical talent development and supports industry-academia collaboration to advance biopharmaceutical innovation.

The collaboration aims to connect academic research and industry expertise to support scientific talent development and research pathways for therapies addressing healthcare needs in India.

Speaking at the signing, Manoj Joshi said that academia-industry collaboration plays a role in bridging research and commercialisation, fostering innovation, and improving access to healthcare. He noted that India’s pharmaceutical sector is transitioning towards an innovation-led ecosystem supported by policy measures, infrastructure and industry-academia linkages in line with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision.

Prof K. Ruckmani, Director, NIPER Hajipur, said, “NIPER Hajipur sits at the heart of one of India’s most populous regions, and our mandate is to build pharmaceutical research and talent capability that serves Bihar, eastern India and the country at large. Our partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim India and particularly the access it brings to the opnMe open science platform, gives our researchers and students direct exposure to globally validated pre-clinical tools and world-class R&D collaboration. This is a meaningful step in realising the Government of India’s vision of building self-reliant, geographically distributed pharmaceutical innovation capability across the country.”

Meenal Gauri, Managing Director, Boehringer Ingelheim India, said “NIPERs have been identified by the government as centres of excellence for Biopharma SHAKTI, and our view is simple: the greater the number of talented Indian researchers engaged in this mission, the stronger the outcomes for the country. That is why, after our partnership with NIPER Raebareli, we are proud to extend opnMe access to the researchers at NIPER Hajipur, giving them the same well-characterised molecules, free of charge, that scientists across the world use for discovery. We see this as the deepening of a long-term commitment to India’s pharmaceutical education network, and our contribution to the Viksit Bharat and Biopharma SHAKTI vision.”

The collaboration is structured on a non-profit, non-commercial basis.