The Department of Science and Technology’s (DST) SATHI initiative has granted Rs 60 Crore (approx. $7 million) to the Mumbai Biocluster. Comprising esteemed institutions such as ICT Mumbai, IIT Bombay, TIFR, ACTREC, and Khalsa College, Mumbai, the biocluster aims to revolutionise drug development in the country. It is led by ICT Mumbai’s Vice Chancellor Prof AB Pandit and Dr Ratnesh Jain, the Principle Investigator of the DST-SATHI project.
Supported by Dr Prasanna Venkatraman from ACTREC, Dr Pratiksha Palahe from Khalsa College, Prof Sudipta Maiti from TIFR, and Prof Rohit Srivastava from IIT Bombay, the collaborative effort will accelerate the development of critical therapies for diseases like cancer, rare diseases, and infectious diseases. The biocluster will serve as an accelerator for startups, academia, MSMEs, and industries, providing state-of-the-art infrastructure and expertise for faster development of biopharma products. With a focus on monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, mRNA technology, and cell & gene therapy, the facility will address key challenges faced during technology scale-up and validation in the drug development phase.
The biocluster also aims to set up a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facility, enabling drug development at an affordable cost.
A press statement informed, “By bridging the gap between research and commercialisation, the Mumbai Biocluster aims to propel India to the forefront of biopharma innovation, driving economic growth and improving healthcare outcomes. With the support of the DST-SATHI grant and the collective expertise of its member institutions, the Mumbai Biocluster is poised to revolutionise the landscape of biopharma research and development in India.”