Gowda assumed office in the middle of June 2004. BioSpectrum team caught up with the secretary on the 10th day of he assuming office and spoke to him on his priorities and plans for promoting the biotechnology industry in the state. His taking charge as the new secretary of the IT, BT, and S&T department is a significant development considering the fact that the newly elected government in the state considers biotech as an important sector for future development and growth. Though just a few weeks old into the department, Gowda has a good understanding about the industry and is all geared up to kick start the next phase of development in this sector. Excerpts from the interview with N Suresh and Srinivas Rao:

A Millennium Biotech Policy was announced in 2000-01. Will there be a revision?
The industry dynamics have changed during the last few years. There is a realization now that biotech has the potential to become a full-scale industry. Earlier the biotech community was also not too sure and was groping in the dark, trying to come to terms with biotech priorities. Now the biotech priorities have been identified. The state government is keen to promote biotech development in the state. At this point of time, we are trying to put together various new initiatives. The revised policy and new initiatives will be announced shortly.

What will be the state's priorities ?
What is good for the human health should be treated as a priority. Several companies are moving to the health care sector, as the volumes are available. Earlier we concentrated on the production part of agri biotech such as new seeds, biofertilizers ... But now per unit productivity has become very important. Value addition has become a key factor. If biotechnology can touch the lives of common people, it will produce volumes and make biotech viable. The bottomline is employment. The stakes of the local people should be there in whatever development happens in the state.

What would be your priorities while promoting the sector?
I would like to make the Bangalore biotechnology park a reality. Initially, there was a push for this, but latter because of some controversies the focus was lost. We are going to make a major pitch for the Bangalore biotech park. We have now acquired 100 acres of land in the Electronics city. The acquisition is over. We would now develop it as a biocluster, where inter-dependent biotech companies would be encouraged to set up operations. We will earmark 10 acres of land for IBAB (the bioinformatics institute), Center for Human Genetics, and an incubation center, which will provide the intellectual inputs for the biotech park. These three will be under our umbrella. Bangalore has the capacity to take nearly $500 million (Rs 2400 crore) in investment in five years. And the Bangalore biotech park will be developed over a period of five years. We are calling for the expression of interest by companies to develop that. It will be a joint venture. The biotechnology park will be operational within a year.

Will you go to the DBT or government of India for support?
If we try with government of India, they will definitely help. For example, in the IT area, when I asked STPI if they would set up a park in Mysore, Belgaum etc., they were affirmative. They wanted the space. So you need to have space to create it. If we provide the space, they will take it up. Raising money for biotech incubators will not be a problem as biotech will be a priority for the Central government too. We are waiting for the Union budget on 8 July for clues on this.

Would you be launching a biotech fund?
Money is not a problem. If we can show that there is viable model and an industrial unit, investment is not going to be an issue. Experimentation should happen in the incubation centers. The companies need to be in the incubation center till they become economically viable. Those who can demonstrate that they have technology and products to do volumes, raising money would not be a problem.

As far as Karnataka is concerned, Rs 50 crore has been earmarked for this purpose, which will be given as soft loans to entrepreneurs.

Do you plan to develop a few more bio clusters and provide fiscal incentives?
We are actively considering a plan to set up a biotech park near the Karnataka University, Dharwad and develop a Marine Biotech Park at Karwar. The focus will be to develop clusters depending on the strengths of each region and on employment creation potential.

With the introduction of the value added tax system next year across the country, fiscal incentives cannot be provided. The focus now has to be on developing a skilled workforce and infrastructure.

Are you satisfied with the BangaloreBio preparations?
BangaloreBio is shaping up well now. The confirmations indicate that the show will be as good or better than last year. Over 90 companies have already confirmed their participation. I expect this figure to grow to 100 before the event starts on July 10.