Some of the recent media out of India… Part 2 of 2For additional information on the extensive work being done in India’s S&T sector, view some of the recent media out of India… Part 2 of 2.View Part 1
India more mature than China for drug discovery (June 16, 2008) IBEF: According to a study titled 'The globalization of innovation: Pharmaceuticals, Can India and China cure the Global Pharmaceutical Market' by US-based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, increasing research and development (R&D) initiatives in the pharmaceutical sector has made India a more mature place for drug discovery activities than China. The report stated that Indian companies are playing an important role in early drug discovery processes due to their substantial experience in the field of generic drugs. The study also holds India as a more established venue for chemistry and drug discovery developments than China. Indian companies like Aurigene, Advinus, Nicholas Piramal and Jubilant have settled long-term deals with foreign pharma companies for developing new chemical entities. "Many drugs from these partnerships are now going into clinical testing", states the study. As a result, R&D would increasingly move to these two countries.The growth in R&D activities has resulted in Indian and Chinese scientists fast developing the capabilities to create and develop their own intellectual property. Western Pharma cos shifting works to India, China (June 12, 2008 ) The Financial Express Cost pressures, the need to tap global talent, and growth opportunities in emerging markets has led Western pharmaceutical companies to shift substantial manufacturing and clinical-trial works to India and China, according to a new study. Big pharmaceutical companies like Merck, Eli Lilly and Johnson and Johnson are now counting these two countries for advanced research and development, the study sponsored by the Ewing Marion Foundation said. Indian and Chinese scientists are rapidly innovating and creating their own intellectual property as a result of Research and Development activities, the report entitled 'The globalisation of innovation: Pharmaceuticals. Can India and China Cure the Global Pharmaceutical Market’. In 2006, 5.5 per cent of all global pharmaceutical patent applications (WIPO PCT applications) named one inventor or more were located in India, and 8.4 per cent in China. This had increased fourfold from that in 1995. "Globalisation is happening faster than people think. Having India and China conduct such sophisticated research and participate in drug discovery was unimaginable even five years ago," said Vivek Wadhwa, an executive of Duke University and a fellow at the Labour and Worklife Programme of Harvard Law School, who led the team of researchers conducting the study. "The challenge is for America to understand this trend and realise the potential of globalisation," he added. The US benefits from innovation wherever it occurs, said Robert Litan, vice president of Research and Policy at the Kauffman Foundation. "Having more countries like India and China develop treatments for diseases is good for the world and will help reduce the overall costs of health care." Through detailed interviews with executives of 16 pharmaceutical firms in China and India on their business models, value-chain activities, partnerships and technology capabilities, the researchers concluded that Indian and Chinese companies are making strides in most of the lucrative segments of global value chains. In less lucrative segments such as preclinical testing, animal experimentation and manufacturing, Chinese firms appear to be more prevalent while India is a more mature venue for chemistry and drug-discovery activities. Domestic Indian and Chinese firms rarely have the capital and the regulatory expertise to develop a drug beyond phase II clinical trials. Their commercial development of new intellectual property therefore necessitates relationships with major multinational corporations. The study found that India is playing a more strategic role in early discovery and its drug companies have the most experience in selling generic drugs that meet FDA standards. Companies such as Ranbaxy, Aurigene, Advinus, Nicholas Piramal and Jubilant have negotiated long-term deals with Western pharmaceutical companies to discover and develop new chemical entities. In a growing number of cases, the Indian companies share the financial risk in discovery as well as the potential financial rewards. One Chinese company, Hutchison MediPharma, has formed a similar partnership with Eli Lilly. Others are likely to follow suit as Chinese contract research organisations gain experience and Western companies trust in China's ability to protect intellectual property, said the researchers. Technology for better healthcare (16 June 2008) The Hindu Latest technology helps in preventive cardiology that emphasises early detection of heart problems and cure, Chairman of K.G. Hospital here G. Bakthavathsalam said on Sunday. Explaining the features of a 128-slice computed tomography (CT) heart scan equipment installed at the hospital, he told presspersons ahead of its commissioning that the technology used in it helped in detecting that a person could suffer a heart attack in six months. This, he pointed out, would help in preventing the attack by putting the person through the right course of treatment. Life-style related problems, such as smoking and stress increased the risk of heart attack. Almost 50,000 people a day were said to suffer heart attack in the country and 30 per cent of them died without reaching the hospital. Many of them mistook a chest pain for gas trouble and took over-the-counter medicines instead of undergoing a check up at a hospital. They decided to go to the hospital the following day because of the pain persisting. But the heart attack killed them before they reached the hospital. People with a history of heart problems in the family or those diagnosed as being the risk group because of problems such as diabetes should undergo heart scanning in order to detect blocks in the blood vessels. Years ago, people underwent just an electro cardiogram test for a heart check-up. It was not enough to detect problems in the coronary arteries. Then things were clearer with the advent of echo cardiograph and treadmill test (or stress test). Even then, people had to under angiogram for precise detection of blocks. But, with angiogram being done at catheter laboratories with an operation theatre atmosphere, people were not inclined to undergo it. The 64-slice scan enabled quick scanning and precise detection. Now, the 128-slice scan captures images in three seconds. Dr. Bakthavathsalam said that though Siemens had not begun a commercial rollout of this equipment in Asia, it had provided K.G. Hospital with one because of a tie-up between the two organisations. “Now, we will provide training for doctors and other staff from hospitals in other countries in Asia in using this equipment,” he said. Explaining the benefits the technology offered to patients, Executive Vice-President of Siemens Medical Solutions India D. Ragavan said, “India is already the diabetes capital of the world. In 10 years, it may also become the heart diseases capital. So, we need technology for early detection and even prevention.” Mr. Ragavan said though the CT scan was based on X-ray technology, there was only a very low dose radiation. The use of the equipment need not be restricted to the heart. It could be used for whole body scan. “It has good use in cardiology, neurology and oncology,” he said. It would be effective in precisely locating multiple internal injuries in accident victims. Apart from use on patients, the equipment would provide high-quality images of various organs for medical students. These images were not available in any textbook brought out till now, he claimed. Varsity proposes to offer M.Tech. course in nanotechnology (11 June 2008) The Hindu Kuvempu University will submit a proposal to Nano Commission seeking its permission to offer an M. Tech course in nanotechnology. Disclosing this at a meeting of the Academic Council at the varsity campus on Monday, Vice-Chancellor B.S. Sherigara said that the proposal had been sent to the commission through the State Department of Science and Technology. He said that as the employment prospects of the postgraduate course appeared to be slim, it was decided to resubmit the proposal with modifications for introduction of M. Tech course according to the suggestion of the commission’s chairman, C.N.R. Rao. He said the university had made a mention in its budget for 2008-09 to offer a postgraduate course in nanotechnology. He said that the university had taken over the Rambhapuri First Grade private college located adjacent to the varsity campus and added that BBM, BCA and B.Sc. courses would be introduced during the current academic year after improving infrastructure. It's time to usher in nanomedicine revolution (12 June 2008) The Economic Times Like information technology, India could well usher in the nanomedicine revolution. Spearheading this mission are two Indian researchers, Kattesh V Katti and Raghuraman Kannan, who have conceived a nanomedicine institution. The project entails an investment of Rs 250 crore. The agenda for the researchers, who have made ground-breaking discoveries in this field, is to develop nanomedicine in a big way and drastically change healthcare delivery. Currently, they are attached to the University of Missouri in the US. "They are keen to come back to India and establish an institution for nanomedicine in the country," Sankara Nethralaya chairman emeritus Dr SS Badrinath told ET here on Wednesday. In India, there are only about a dozen nanomedicine specialists, he added. Dwelling on the mega nanomedicine project, he said Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have been identified as the twin locations to set up the institution. The project envisages an investment of Rs 250 crore and it would require about 100 acres. Given the pressure on land in cities, the nanomedicine institution is going to come up in a tier II location, he said. Also read
Sankara Nethralaya, which has created the National Institute for Research in Visual Sciences (NIRVO) as a research arm, would partner with the two researchers in the training and teaching module. This would involve setting up another non-profit arm, that would look at roping in reputed organisations like the premier eyecare institution, in various health specialities. So far, NIRVO has been receiving technical support in the area of nanotechnology to study cell cultures, image tissues and drug delivery. The Union government, especially the department of S&T and department of biotechnology, has also evinced interest to promote nanomedicine in the country, Dr Badrinath said. Noting that the diagnostic and therapeutic potential of nanomedicine was phenomenal, he highlighted the impact of nanomedicine on oncology. For example, it could lend a different dimension to chemotherapy complications. The blueprint of the institution includes research and commercialisation modules. The chancellor of Missouri, international relation officer, alongwith a team of top-notch people will be visiting Chennai by this month-end to fine-tune the initiative. The researchers would even evaluate options of tying up with institutions like the SASTRA University in Thanjavur. The project would take about 18 months to be completed, Dr Badrinath said, adding the duo, which has already begun discussions with two or three private equity players, is keen to bring in foreign funds too. Technology funds give negative returns (17 June 2008) The Times of India With the markets under bear grip, it is but natural to think equity as taboo. But, within equity schemes, the silent sufferers seem to be those who have invested in technology funds. All schemes that are open have generated negative returns for the one year period ended June 13, 2008. A quick glance at the net asset values (NAVs) of the seven schemes shows that the returns (negative) range from 6.14% to 27.29%. During the same period BSE IT index was down 12.7%, while the BSE Sensex over the one year period was up 8.5%. DSP ML- returned (-) 6.14% with a NAV of Rs 26.80, Birla New Millennium (-) 14.78% with a NAV of Rs 18.39, Franklin Infotech Fund had a NAV of Rs 42.70 and returned (-) 17.47%, ICICI Pru Tech Fund recorded returns of (-) 19.69% on a NAV of Rs 13.13, SBI Magnum IT Fund's NAV was Rs 19.54 and returns were (-) 22.7%, Kotak Tech Fund eroded 26.6% over the past year with a NAV of Rs 7.77 while the poorest performance was from UTI Software Fund with a NAV of Rs 20.14 and returns of (-) 27.29%. All the funds, even as they have generated negative returns still charge 2.25% as entry load and their expense ratio too is in excess of 2.25%. The best performance of these funds have been during January 2008, just before the markets were ambushed by the bears and from there on it has been a downhill drive. A fund manager pointed out that among the top-ten outperformers in the stock exchanges (between March 18 and June 11), majority of the stocks are from IT and pharma space, benefiting mainly due to the depreciation of the rupee. The stocks that have given returns ranging from 19% to 44.5% include Infosys, Wipro, Satyam, Dr Reddys, Ranbaxy and HCL. "Technology and pharma stocks were the ones which were badly hit when the Rupee started appreciating against dollar during the second half of last year. But, now with a trend reversal on the forex front, the coming months will definitely be better for technology stocks which will have a bearing on the NAVs of tech funds," the fund manager said. Domestic cos shy away from keeping patents ‘in force’ (17 June 2008) Business Line (The Hindu) Technology, and in some cases commercial value, is changing at such a fast pace that there has been a drop in the number of patents that Indian companies are keeping alive by paying maintenance fee to the domestic patent office. Data available with the patents office reveals that domestic companies are shying away from paying the mandatory licence fee required for maintaining some of their patents or as in technical parlance, keeping them ‘in force’. Ironically, this is at a time when the number of patents that are being granted has surged. For instance, Ranbaxy and Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have cited lack of business interest or obsolete technology as reasons for abandoning granted patents. CSIR, which claims to have a share of almost 20 per cent of the total patents granted to Indians in 2006-07, estimates that on an average 6 per cent of them are allowed to lapse. The organisation was granted 281 patents in FY 2006-07. Cause tab “Keeping a patent in force is determined by how effective enforcement is and whether such enforcement would provide any commercial value as payback,” admitted Mr Ramesh Adige, Executive Director, Ranbaxy. “Besides, another reason why there would have been a reduction in the number of patents in force could be in the area of process patents. Since most process patents were filed by Indian companies as MNCs were not filing on the processes in the pre-2005 regime, there could have been a decline,” he commented. Other reasons for non-renewal cited by patent office officials include its purely academic nature in some case, lack of financial resources by individuals or instances when companies have not found the right partner to whom they could license the particular patent or technology. For foreign firms In contrast foreign companies are known to keep their patents here alive. “The high number of patents that foreign companies keep ‘in force’ reflects the significance of the domestic market, compelling them to maintain them,” said an official from the FICCI- DIPP working group. According to patent attorney, Mr Sameer Panda from law firm Anand and Anand, Indian companies spend 2 per cent of their turnover on R&D as against foreign companies that usually spend double the amount. Who Will Ride India's Next Wave? Media and entertainment, private education, infrastructure, and renewable energy companies are poised to prosper as India's middle class expands (16 June 2008) BusinessWeek.com Welcome to the "Next Wave." We are living in an unprecedented point in human history when the new consumer, technology, infrastructure, and environments begin to converge and create one of the world's greatest eras of economic growth and technological innovation. During the next 20 years, the Next Wave will create more new consumers than the previous millennium did. Investments in infrastructure will exceed the total investments in the reconstruction of post-war Europe. Technology and the Internet will be the great enabler, facilitating the development of multiple centers of innovation across a wide range of geographies. And the environment will be a critical thread within this new tapestry, as climate change and the need for resources push humankind to find new approaches to economic development and sustainable growth. Although China, Brazil, Russia, and other emerging markets will drive much of this, India stands at the forefront with its rapidly growing middle class, massive investments in infrastructure, a technology-based culture, and growing need for energy and other natural resources. Many companies will benefit from the Next Wave, but some verticals will capture the lion's share of the growth and profits. Among the most significant of these "Next-Wave Verticals" are media and entertainment groups. They are gaining importance in India because of the country's growing middle class, improving literacy rates and increasingly organized retail sector driving demand for print, radio, and TV content. Improvements in infrastructure and advances in technology are also rapidly increasing media penetration in rural areas of the country where more than two-thirds of the population resides. Tapping into the "Teenager Effect" Advertising spending in India is roughly one-third of that in the U.S. and Europe, but that's rapidly changing as retailers find competition growing and consumers become more sophisticated and discerning in their buying decisions. There are now more Indian homes with television sets than homes with telephones. India's 119 million television households comprise about 60% of the total households in the country. About 50 million receive cable-television services, leading to a penetration of about 42%. The television-distribution market consists of revenues generated by companies that distribute television programming to viewers. This includes spending by consumers on subscriptions to basic and premium channels delivered by cable operators, satellite providers, or Internet protocol television [IPTV] services, as well as on video-on-demand [VOD]. The Indian DVD market now exceeds 1.5 billion units per year. This figure is expected to grow to 4.5 billion units per year by 2010. The explosive growth in DVD sales also is attributed to the predominance of single-TV households. However, this is expected to change as rising incomes and a large pool of teenagers fuel mushrooming growth of multiple-TV households, commonly known as the "Teenager Effect." These factors will continue to drive high revenue growth and profitability for such media and entertainment companies as TV18, ENIL, and D.B. Corp., which are leaders in this space. Private education will also ride India's Next Wave as an aspiring population seeks to give its children and itself the greatest opportunity to succeed and prosper in the new economy. With the exception of the world-renowned Indian Institutes of Management & Technology, the Indian public school system has proved to be a dismal failure. As a result, Indian citizens of all socio-economic brackets have looked increasingly to the private sector for their education needs. All Eyes on Manipal Education As with other Next Wave Verticals, technology and infrastructure have fostered the rapid expansion of private education as Internet-based learning programs create opportunities for distance-learning, and improvements in communications and roads have created new education institutions in rural areas of the country. Private education in India is growing more than 30% per year, and the profitability of this sector exceeds that of most North American institutions. Companies like Manipal Education are at the forefront of this growth as they continue to develop innovative solutions to meet the increased demand. Environmental services is becoming one India's the fastest-growing Next Wave Verticals, as an increasingly industrialized economy and wealthy population elevates the need for clean air and water and the recycling of scarce natural resources. The Indian government is looking to the private sector to build and manage numerous aspects of environmental services to include waste-water treatment, hazardous waste disposal and air-quality control systems. Considering that approximately 70% of India's cities do not have adequate waste-water treatment, the financial opportunities in this area alone are significant. India's carbon-credit market is currently valued at $5 billion and is expected to double to $10 billion by 2009. This will create a significant opportunity for carbon-capture equipment and for environmental consulting services that focus on reducing greenhouse gases. Renewable energy is a global issue that could define India's long-term economic success. India has very little in the way of crude oil reserves and finding new fields will become a costly proposition. As India's economy continues to grow, so will its energy needs. Developing renewable sources of energy is a national priority. Renewable energy only accounts for about 5% of India's total energy consumption. The Indian government has set a goal of generating 50% of the country's energy needs by 2050. This will require massive investments in a wide range of renewable energy sources. Moser Baer Photovoltaic Planning an IPO India is already developing technical and manufacturing leadership in several areas including wind, solar, and biomass. Suzlon Energy, a publicly traded Indian company, is now the world's fifth-largest wind energy provider, and its ranking is expected to climb in the near future. Moser Baer Photovoltaic, which is planning an initial public offering in 2009, is becoming a global leader in the development and manufacture of thin-film solar technology. And Bhoruka Power has become a leading player in the small hydro segment for power generation in India. But the largest manufacturer of agricultural vehicles in India, Mahindra & Mahindra, is taking the lead in biodiesel. In February, 2007, the company introduced versions of its two most successful sport-utility vehicles, Scorpio and Bolero, which run on biodiesel. Scorpio is the first Asian vehicle in its class running on 100% biodiesel. Mahindra also unveiled a biodiesel tractor for the first time in India. The company had set up its own biodiesel plant in 2001. It completed extensive studies and worked with IIT Kanpur, a leading Indian technology institute recognized globally, and the R&D center of Indian Oil Corp. Mahindra is also simultaneously working on its vehicles' fuel adaptability and trying to position itself for when India matures to the point of requiring better fuel sources. Second Largest Producer of Sugar Cane That day may not be far off, as India is the world's second-largest producer of sugar cane, which is a preferred source for ethanol. Renewable energy will provide investors and joint venture partners with significant returns during the coming years. And with opportunities in solar, wind, ethanol, and biodiesel, numerous global synergies are emerging exist between homebuilders, power companies, and automotive firms. Savvy investors and corporations already recognize the significant potential of the Next Wave. They know another wave like this won't crest for another 20 years or 30 years, and they're eyeing opportunities to capitalize on this unique opportunity. Indian IT market to grow by 18 percent (13 June 2008) The Press Trust of India Limited The Indian IT market is expected to grow by 18 per cent to USD 38 billion in the present year, clocking second highest growth rate after China, which is likely to attain a 20 per cent growth and touch USD 138 billion mark, according to research data released by Forrester. The research firm calls this double-digit growth as a welcome news for technology vendors, who see slackness in the US and European markets and advises them to recognise India as a consumer of IT than just a supplier. The report 'The State Of A-PAC Enterprise Technology Adoption: 2008', gives highlights of data collected from 777 companies in the Asia Pacific region via Forrester's Enterprise Technology Adoption Survey (Asia Pacific, Q4 2007). These 777 companies, which had a 1000-plus employee size, from countries such as Australia, New Zealand, India, Korea, Singapore, Japan and China participated in the survey. Forrester's Senior Analyst, Jonathan Brown, who authored the report, said, "The IT sector has long looked to India for top-drawer technology talent. But India is poised to become an increasingly important market for technology vendors." As rural India becomes increasingly developed and its engagement with the US increases and the population comes of age, India would become an important IT market, he added. "It's time the tech vendors no longer treat India as merely a skilled talent pool but also as a lucrative market in its own right", he said. Citing the report data on India's most promising opportunities, Brown said, "Indian firms will make the greatest leaps in application integration, ERP, CRM, unified communication, and security and regulatory compliance." In addition, India's cultural diversity, fragmented state governments and socio-economic disparities makes it a microcosm of the broader APAC region, he added. "I expect smart vendors will use India as a testing ground for new business models and strategies to try out models for the next wave of emerging economies", he added. The report states that though Asia Pacific economies are closely connected to each other through trade and cross investment, they differ enormously in their levels of economic development and the states of their IT infrastructure. Brown advised technology vendors to tap Japan for services rather than software and be cautious in Chinese market. India plans to establish 43 new IT cities (16 June 2008) Xinhua News Agency India is planning to build 43 new information technology cities across the country to retain its top status in the business and to be in a position to tap the huge surge in demand for IT-enabled services over next 10 years. The move comes at a time when the rising infrastructure and employee costs in big cities is threatening to blunt India's crucial cost advantage, according to the Times of India Monday. While India has held on to its pre-eminent position, its IT and BPO companies are losing their global cost advantage with the emergence of countries like Vietnam and the Philippines, which offer similar services at cheaper rates and are threatening India' s status as the world's back office. As the allure of BPO jobs goes down and attrition rates go up, companies are increasingly finding it difficult to recruit quality employees in the big cities. Also of concern is infrastructure constraints in Bangalore, Gurgaon and elsewhere. The plan to build brand new towns is designed to address some of these issues. It is felt that these new towns will provide a steady supply of workers besides being specifically geared towards the needs of the IT and BPO sectors. The proposal, suggested by a high-level group on service sector, has been cleared by the Planning Commission of India. According to the plan, each IT city will be set up in an area of more than 500 hectare. The cities will altogether generate employment for around 3.5 million people by 2018. The proposal is to create self-contained satellite townships with commercial space for renting and a commensurate increase in residential accommodation, education, healthcare, retail and recreational facilities. At present, the major volume of India's IT-enabled services is concentrated in seven cities -- Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Gurgaon and Noida. Government estimates point out that 95 percent of the IT and BPO service industry is in these cities, with around 36 percent of services concentrated in Bangalore alone. Under the proposal, the government plans to shift 40 percent of the business to the upcoming 43 cities by 2018. The new towns will be properly planned and laid out and endowed with modern infrastructure and good connectivity to the big cities and airports. The Indian government has sought the support of state governments in facilitating creation of these new towns. The proposal suggests that the towns will be developed by private players and state governments will ensure trunk services like electricity, water supply, sewage and drainage. Medical devices, the next big step for semiconductor makers Industry leaders say the sector offers unique opportunities in India, which has the capability to address the need Semiconductors, silicon chips that run mobile phones, game consoles, photo copiers, television sets and almost all other electronic devices are in search of a saviour-a killer application that can maintain its magic run that began with the personal computer and consumer electronics booms in the 1990s. And, it seems, medical applications-growing at 12% annually, higher than any other semiconductor application, according to market research firm Databeans Inc.-could well be the knight in shining armour. “The industry is looking for the next big thing; everybody is searching to find efficiencies in their businesses-improve productivity and reduce cost,” says Jaswinder Ahuja, corporate vice-president and managing director of Cadence Design Systems India Pvt. Ltd and chairman of industry lobby Indian Semiconductor Association (ISA). For these reasons, even though medical semiconductors comprise just about 1% of the global industry-and projected to reach $266.6 billion (Rs11.4 trillion) this year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, a US grouping-ISA assigned medical electronics top priority at its annual summit earlier this year. Ahuja says the sector offers unique opportunities in India, which has the need as well as the capability to address it. The industry has begun chipping at the opportunity. Texas Instruments Inc., or TI, recently unveiled a new class of chips for portable to high-end ultrasound diagnostic equipment, which the company says allows better image quality and reduced power consumption. In April, TI signed an agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, to develop semiconductor technologies for health-care applications-the first association for the company with an IIT in this area, according to Biswadip Mitra, managing director, TI India. GE Medical Systems Information Technologies Pvt. Ltd in Bangalore is currently evaluating this chip for its forthcoming portable ultrasound products, for India as well as the global market. GE recently launched a portable electrocardiograph, or ECG, machine that gives results at as low as $1 compared with $25- $100 otherwise. The second biggest medical semiconductor supplier, STMicroelectronics NV (ST), has virtually built a “technology toolbox” to facilitate convergence of semiconductor and health care industries. Using technology that was originally developed for ink-jet applications, it recently unveiled a “lab-on-a-chip platform” called In-Check, whose first product, in collaboration with a Singapore firm Veredus Laboratories Pvt. Ltd, is an avian flu diagnostic test. “India is one of ST’s most important centres for design and will play a major role as ST expands its offerings in healthcare,” says Michael Markowitz, director of technical media at ST. The In-check platform is now being used to develop other molecular tests, he adds. Such diagnostics are made possible by what are called system-on-chips, or SoCs, where all the components of the traditional printed circuit boards are integrated on a single chip. Freescale Semiconductors India is active in this space and has some “work in progress” which it is not ready to disclose yet. But its president and country manager Ganesh Guruswamy agrees that there’s plenty of innovation that Indian engineers can bring in the design while driving the cost down. “We can integrate more stuff, for instance if two-three chips are used for sensing, we could use one; or even add video processing,” he explains. It’s an emerging market and everybody is studying it, he says. The Western world has started to look at medical applications as the next big opportunity as the phone and automotive markets are getting saturated and fast turning into commodity-like businesses. In India, these sectors are still driving the industry, but experts say it would be prudent to get started early on. To the extent Indian engineers and semiconductor companies are already proving themselves to be the chip design houses of the world, medical applications, even if challenging, might just need priming the existing pump, some experts say. According to a report jointly prepared by technology researcher International Data Corp. and ISA and released in April, the Indian design market was worth $6 billion in 2007 and is estimated to grow at 21.7% annually in the years to 2010, more than three times the global growth rate. The intensity of design and testing work involved in chips associated with medical applications, for instance, makes such development a good fit for India. Custom design companies such as Cadence say biomedical devices also use a significant number of radio frequency, or RF, and analog-mixed signal components—both areas that are design-intensive. In short, “chips should be designed to have high levels of sensing functionality and configurability,” says Poornima Mohanachandran, director of medical business development at TI India. “We see medical electronics as the next growth engine, particularly in a country like India,” she says. Telemedicine, tele-diagnostics and other remote ways of taking medical help to rural areas are some of the uses that she thinks have vast scope here in India. Intel Technology India Pvt. Ltd’s Sanat Rao, marketing director for the company’s embedded market division, thinks medical imaging is another area that places India in a strong position. From traditional applications such as ultrasound machines, magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scans to emerging ones such as home health monitoring, ECG machines with easy and common interfaces with computers and other devices, automated pathology equipment, India offers tremendous growth opportunities. “We see several original equipment manufacturers developing products for the Indian market,” says Rao. While leaders such as Intel and TI are betting big on embedded chips and dual core processors (a new technology that increases the speed of computing in electronic devices), smaller players such as Open-Silicon Inc., an application specific integrated circuit provider, think their offerings, particularly with radio and medical analysis capability, will play a big role. Whether the medical chip sector will get divided in battle lines the way graphics chips today are trying to outflank each other in price and performance is a question that will need an answer a few years down the road when health care becomes accessible to a larger population. Currently, just about a third of India’s population has access to hospitals, according to the country’s drug prices regulator National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority. Still, as of now, the challenge for the industry, according to ST’s Markowitz, is mastering a “knowledge network” that includes expertise in physiology, biology, chemistry, and regulatory issues that “semiconductor companies have little experience with”. The other catch is affordability. While features in medical applications are certainly an advancement over what is required for most commercial applications, pricing the products within the consumer’s reach remain a challenge. It is for this reason that some of the leading firms in this area may not look at India and developing countries seriously for technology-intensive opportunities such as SoCs, fears Chandrasekhar Nair, founder director of Bigtec Pvt. Ltd, a biotechnology company that is currently testing a SoC-based handheld diagnostic device in Hyderabad. “This is also possibly because the Indian market is very price-sensitive,” he says. The developers could then emerge locally because India can serve as a proxy for the entire developing world. “I am excited about how Indian players will step up to address the needs of the market, which is going to be the biggest growth driver not only for India but the global industry,” says Cadence India’s Ahuja. Semiconductors in medical applications (Source Mint research) * Smaller, lighter, and cheaper electronic devices like CT and MRI scanners, ultrasound and ECG machines * Devices for drug dispensation like insulin pumps * Implants for tissue repair; for example, deep brain stimulator for Parkinson’s disease * Monitoring devices like glucometer, blood pressure meters * Automated pathology equipment that do blood tests, clot detection, test for diseases such as hepatitis, avian flu, malaria, et al. For instance, GE and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center are developing a ‘virtual microscope” that would let clinicians analyse slides from computer monitors and share their results with an expert anywhere in the world Wonder medicine plant claims to cure cancer (12 June 2008) The Statesman Scientists have finally identified and named a wonder plant that has been creating waves here for some time now. The plant traditionally called Kam-sabut is claimed to be able to cure cancer cases which doctors have given up on. Researchers from Manipur University's life science department say the plant belongs to the Euphorbia ceae family but was of a new species and a new name Croton Caudatus Gieseler has been allotted by the Botanical Survey of India, Shillong following a submission of a research report submitted by a MU team. Extracts of Euphorbia ceae of at least 10 species are used by Columbian traditional healers to treat ulcers, cancers, tumours, warts and other diseases. It is however for the first time that its existence, and its 'miracle properties' in this region is being discovered. Thought the plant, locally known as Zanlung Damdawi was traditionally used by the Hmar tribe inhabiting the southern district of Churachandpur since time immemorial for treating different ailments it was chance discovery by an 82 year old cancer patient, Mr Chawlien Hmar of Saikot village that catapulted it to its present miracle status. Mr Chawlien who was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour growth on his neck by Radiology department of RIMS turned to the herb out of sheer pain and lack of money to undergo an operation. He soon found that his pain disappeared and the swelling subsided and started relating the story to others. He is however yet to undergo medical tests to find out if he has been cured of the cancer. Even so, thousands are thronging Saikot village all over the state and the neighbouring states of Mizoram and Nagaland for his potions. The plant itself has been renamed Chawlien Damdei and researchers are scrambling to unravel its secrete. Samples and extracts have been collected by the newly set up Chawlien Cancer Medicine Research Agency, the Institute of Bioresource and Sustainable Development in Takyelpat, Imphal and Manipur University's department of life science. Associate professor P Kumar, who led the MU team that did research on the plant, says at least three active chemicals ~ Dotriacontamol, B-amyrin and B-sitosterol have been detected in the bark and roots of the plant. He said more research to identify other active chemicals is on. While Mr. Chawlien himself claims to given free potion to over 1,000 patients, a scramble to market the "miracle cure" has also transformed Saikot, with rows of vendors and villagers hawking the plant and extracts. Advertisements have started appearing on local TV network and local papers and even outlets have appeared in the state capital. This mad scramble has however alarmed the researchers. Prof. Kumar feels that at this rate, there is a danger of the medicinal plant being overexploited, and if replanting and protection are not carried out it may disappear. He also felt the need for patenting the species, and called the attention of the state government to this wonder plant. National Spot Exchange To Leverage The CSC Network For Developing Agri Business Across India (11 June 2008) Exchange News Direct In an important development National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL), a Financial Technologies group company and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd. (IL&FS), today announced a strategic alliance for development of agri business and other allied services in India. Department of Information Technology (DIT), Government of India has decided to establish 100,000+ ICT-enabled Common Service Centres (CSC) in rural areas in the country on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. It has appointed IL&FS as the "National Level Service Agency" (NLSA) for project development, facilitation & coordination of the CSC Scheme. NSEL will partner with the SCAs (Service Centre Agencies, who will establish & operate the CSCs) and other stakeholders to leverage the CSC network to make use of infrastructure and internet enabled network of accredited CSCs to promote, market and disseminate its services to more than 500,000 villages across the country. Commenting on this significant development Mr. Anjani Sinha, MD & CEO, National Spot Exchange said, "National Spot Exchange is poised to have far reaching impact at the bottom of the pyramid. National Spot Exchange will reach out to more than 5,00,000 villages through the widespread network of 1,00,000 CSC's. Farmers will be financially and psychologically independent as they will be able to make informed decisions by way of direct participation. This alliance will develop and strengthen rural- urban linkage to benefit the rural economy, and will prepare a solid ground for the launch of the much-needed second green revolution; seen as a long -term solution to India's food crisis." Ms. Aruna Sundararajan, IAS, CEO (Common Service Centre), IL&FS said, "The well-established network of CSCs will facilitate the functioning of integrated service delivery points for various services including e-governance, education, health, agriculture, financial services, e-commerce and entertainment. CSCs will also provide farmers with real time prices as well as make them available a transparent trading platform in the form of national spot exchange that will keep them abreast of the latest information relating to agricultural commodities and inputs. As a result, farmers will be able to take quick and right decisions." On this occasion Shri U.K.S. Chauhan, Joint Secretary (Marketing) & Agricultural Marketing Advisor said, "I am happy that National Spot exchange will be live very soon and be an important aid to millions of farmers in getting right prices in real time that they were seeking all these years. Farmers will get an alternative market, larger in size and fully transparent, to sell his produce at competitive bidding." IL & FS and NSEL will work to explore the possibility of developing synergies between National Spot Exchange and CSC project to provide better prices to farmers through E-trading platform. The alliance will benefit farmers in more ways than one. Farmers will have access to information relating to crops that will enable them to take decisions about selling his produce at prices made available on national level platform. The transparent trading platform will obviate the need for the middlemen. Farmers' holding capacity will help him steer clear of the danger of distress sale at harvesting time. This is because farmers will be able to get bank loans against pledge of warehouse receipts after they deposit their produce at NSEL warehouse. Horticulture Biotechnology centre (10 June 2008) The Haryana government has decided to set up a horticulture bio-technology Centre near Horticulture Training Centre at Uchani in Karnal district to produce tissue Culture Plants. Stating this here today, Agriculture Minister Harmohinder Singh Chatha said the Centre would be set up to keep pace with the modern science. The Horticulture Bio-Technology Centre would produce tissue culture of crops of banana, potato micro tubers, cuttings of flowers crops and other horticultural crops. Plant tissue culture, which was a useful tool for the rapid production of many genetically identical plants using relatively small amounts of space, supplies and time would be extensively used for giving a major fillip to horticultural activities in the state. The Centre would also cater to introduce the concept of DNA finger printing and popularising the virus indexing technology. The Minister said the department would also spend a sum of Rs 92 lakh for popularisation and extension of latest technologies in Horticulture. Shows, seminars and field days would be organised at government gardens and nurseries and farmers' fields in each district throughout the state to create awareness about latest technologies and to motivate farmers to adopt these practices in the cultivation of their horticultural crops. View Part 1 of the coverage |
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