Centre taking steps to strengthen North East biodiversity infrastructure, says Harsh Vardhan

To explore and exploit the bio-diversity and bio-technology of Northeastern region, considered as one of the world's major bio-diversity hot spots, the government plans to strengthen scientific infrastructure.

"The government would strengthen scientific infrastructure to explore and exploit the bio-diversity and bio-technology in the north-eastern states. The existing biotechnology hubs and bio-informatic centres in the region would be reinforced, and new such centres would be set up," Union Minister for Science and Technology, and Earth Sciences Harsh Vardhan said.

He said: "India is the best among the many developed countries in exploiting biotechnology like stem cells development, and DNA-related works. Two out of three vaccines for numerous purposes are being developed in India."

The minister said, "Early tsunami warning was the best in India among all countries and within 10 minutes after a quake, we can tell the country and across the world about the intensity of the tremor."

The minister was inaugurating a biotechnology hub and a bioinformatics centre at the Tripura Central University for which his ministry had earlier provided Rs.3.70 crores.

The aim of this hub is to increase awareness of biotechnology by providing training and teaching to students and teachers from school to college level.

In addition, the state biotech hub has to improve the quality of biological research, using modern equipment available at the facility and also produce skilled manpower.

The bioinformatics centre envisages supporting teaching activities of biology through application of bioinformatics, to organise training, workshop for familiarising with the application of bioinformatics in teaching and research and to promote research work in bioinformatics and to develop effective collaboration with experimental scientists.