Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) and The National Association for Software & Services Companies (NASSCOM) in collaboration with Grand Challenges India (GCI) have launched ‘जनCARE’ a nationwide Innovation Challenge to discover, design and scale the Health-Tech Innovations, which work in low resource-settings especially, in rural & semi urban environments. These innovations will be built on technologies such as artificial intelligence, IoT, machine learning, big-data and analytics, making use of telehealth platforms to enhance the access, quality and affordability of the delivery of healthcare at the last mile.

The “जनCARE” challenge is ably supported by Grand Challenges India, a partnership framework between the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) in India, BIRAC along with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to launch joint initiatives aimed at catalysing innovative health and development research within India.

This unique “जनCARE” challenge will identify upto 25 best Healthtech solutions from startups/ SMEs and provide pilot test beds in collaboration with State Governments & Industry to help their validation and scale up for adoption.

Dr Renu Swarup, Secretary, DBT formally declared the challenge open and said "I am glad to see the strategic alignment between BIRAC (biotech sector) and NASSCOM (IT sector) for a joint commitment to enhance the efficiency of healthcare delivery at the last mile."

The “जनCARE” Innovation Challenge is an industry-wide collaborative effort. AstraZeneca, GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthineers, Medanta Hospitals, St John’s Research Institute, Health Care Global Enterprises and TATA AIG have already joined hands with this innovation challenge to provide their support and mentorship to the participating Start-ups till the end of pilot phase. More industry and State partners are expected to join this initiative.