The Hindu Business Line : IICT to sign pact for biotech centre

THE Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) is set to enter into an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh Government and the Shapoorji Pallonji Biotech Parks Ltd., located in the genome Valley, wherein it plans to invest Rs 20 crore and become a biotech incubator.

The Director of IICT, Dr K.V. Raghavan, on Sunday said that this facility is aimed at helping biotech companies in their biotechnology initiatives and take some of the research ideas to the market.

Alongside this initiative, IICT, which is celebrating its Diamond Jubilee year event, has developed technology for rice bran oil extraction, is set to sign up with about 15 clients, which will see an investment of about Rs 12 crore, with Rs 75 lakh going in for each company. Towards this, IICT on Sunday handed over the technology document to M/S Ramchandra Oil, a Hyderabad-based company.

The Director-General of Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Dr R.A. Mashelkar, addressing the members of the CSIR fraternity and scientists, said that the IICT needs to chart out a project that is befitting an organisation like this.

This means, they will have to come up with a diamond jubilee project, that will create a global impact. Highlighting the rapid strides made by the IICT, Dr Mashelkar citing the recent case of JPC probe into the pesticide content in Colas, said that it is necessary to study and make out a clear case out of this. In the light of findings by a NGO, he said that we have to look at such issues more dispassionately.

For instance, research studies indicated that even coconut water or for that matter mother's milk, which is considered the ultimate form of purity, indicated that they too contain pesticides.

Earlier, the IICT also commissioned ENVIS centre, which has been co-funded by the World Bank and the Union Ministry of Environment. This centre is designed to provide information relating to environment particularly with regard to diseases that spread through vectors.

While highlighting the services rendered by IICT, Dr Raghavan said that the institute has emerged as a key centre for research in this part of the world working closely with industry. Formed by a Royal Firman by the Nizam in the year 1944 and carved out as a part of Osmania University, this became part of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research in 1954 and later became Regional Research Laboratory.

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