In India, two main sources of employment are medical biotechnology and agricultural biotechnology. Medical biotechnology, is an emerging sector in India, and accounts for nearly 70% of the total revenue of the biotech sectors. The companies that populate this sector could be divided into three broad categories.
One is that of small startup companies that have indigenously developed biotech products, e.g., Shantha Biotech and Bharat Biotech. Then there are large pharmaceutical firms which have began responding to the biotech wave and have incorporated biotechnology in their strategy like Dr. Reddy's Laboratory (DRL), Ranbaxy Laboratories and Wockhardt Ltd. The third group has start-ups, which are all set to emerge as contract research organisations (CROs), who mainly work for transnational corporations. It is this segment which is considered to be at the forefront of growth and employment generation, but so far has been only in the realm of possibility.
Then there are firms like Biocon India which may not fit well in this kind of classification as they have an established presence in industrial biotechnology and a growing presence in the pharmaceutical sector, and are now more identified with pharmaceuticals rather than industrial applications.
Yet another potential area of research is agricultural biotechnology. This sector is populated on one hand by subsidiaries of TNCs and on the other hand by highly specialized technology companies that undertake services for specified research, like contract research organisations. This is a relatively new concept in the agriculture R&D in India. Some of the companies like Avesthagen qualify in this group. Having succeeded in BT cotton, there are attempts to go for BT products in food crops. The manpower required for this activity is derived mostly from plant breeding and botany.
The industry is keen to get trained hands from Molecular breeding. Though biotechnology has developed as a discipline in several academic (public, private and affiliated) institutions, need based specialization is yet to blossom in India. The developed world on the other hand has initiated focused centres of activity and specially trained manpower is supplied for the niche industry.
Yet another domain which would recruit in the long run would be the biofertiliser and biopestisides industry. While attempts are on to develop better formulations and cost effective commercially viable biopesticides including microbial pesticides, parasitoids and bacteria, this sector is yet to see active recruitment.
At the present moment great emphasis is being given on developing bio-fuels as an alternate source of fuel. Research is also in progress for the development of genetically modified bamboos that is an alternate source of fibre and also an excellent carbon absorber. Industrial microbiology is also a major area of research for development of new products that are of immense importance for the pharmaceutical industry.
Existing industries like sugar and distilleries in India have enjoyed the contribution from tissue culture and bio-inputs. Process modifications and metabolic engineering of yeasts will add to the requirement for biotechnologists. Several focused programmes are required to adds to the skills of the employed manpower.
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