Biotechnology involves the applications of biology by the use of living organisms in health, agriculture, the environment and other related areas. Bioengineering processes using biotechnology have led to the development of many products of commercial importance. Today, about 20 percent of all world pharmaceuticals are produced by using biotechnological processes and it has been estimated that by the year 2020, about 50 percent of all pharmaceuticals will be produced in this manner. For example, the insulin used for the treatment of diabetes is produced by biotechnological methods....................
In agriculture, biotechnological methods have been used to develop new strains of crops with improved nutritional qualities, that are resistant to environmental stresses and to attacks by pests. ..........................
India has made remarkable progress in biotechnology. India realised that the key to poverty-alleviation and progress lies in developing a strong “knowledge economy.” India therefore focused on human resource development that could prepare it to develop rapidly in a number of areas of industrial importance, such as information technology, biotechnology and, more recently, nanotechnology. It established seven world famous Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in the latter half of the last century that provide it with high quality manpower in various fields of cutting-edge science and engineering and nine additional IITs are being added, along with 29 new universities over the next five years.
After my appointment as federal minister for science and technology in March 2000, and later as chairman of the Higher Education Commission in October 2002, a number of measures were taken to promote high-level research in our universities, described in my article published in this newspaper on Sept 3, 2011. As a result, the research output of Pakistani universities in reputable international journals sky-rocketed, reaching 4,600 annually by the year 2010, starting from only 600 per year in the year 2000.
Considering that India has a population seven times ours, and that there are about 35,000 research publications from India annually, it is clear that on a population comparison basis we had almost caught up with India and were poised to overtake it. Alas, the budget of HEC was slashed in 2008, and it barely survived an attempt by corrupt politicians with forged degrees to shred it to pieces, due to the timely intervention of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on my appeal.
India initially focused on Information technology. India’s software exports today exceed $60 billion and they are expected to reach $ 70 billion by March next year. India today has 55 percent of the world’s share of the outsourcing market. Having acquired a world leadership position in information technology, India has been making rapid headway in another emerging area, biotechnology. .......It has established a separate department of biotechnology under the ministry of science and technology that assists more than 5,000 Indian scientists each year with research grants and in development of various industrial products. As a result, more than 5,000 research publications have been published and 4,000 postdoctoral fellowships awarded, as well as many products developed at an industrial level in India.
India’s exports of biotechnology products crossed $3 billion two years ago and are expected to reach $5 billion this year. The exports of biotechnology products from Pakistan remain zero as our governments have done little to promote this important sector. Within 15 years India plans to increase its exports of biotechnology-based pharmaceuticals and other products to $50 billion, at their present rate of growth of about 20 percent per annum.
In Pakistan the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission took the lead by establishing the National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Faisalabad. The institute is the leading research centre in this field in Pakistan with researches focused on agricultural, medical and environmental biotechnologies. A good facility was set up at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Islamabad. The Centre for Advanced Molecular Biology (CAMB) and the School of Biological Sciences were established at Punjab University. More recently the Dr Panjwani Centre for Molecular Medicine was set up under the umbrella of the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences at Karachi University with good facilities for neuroscience and stem cell research.
Excellent facilities for structural biology have also been set up through a powerful NMR laboratory at the Husein Ebrahim Jamal Research Institute of Chemistry. With the slashing of the development budget by more than 50 percent during the last two years, all these programs have been badly affected........................................
As in the case of information technology, it appears that it will be too late when we wake up to the potential of biotechnology for commercialisation. Our government must set up separate national level organisations (on the pattern of the Higher Education Commission) of Biotechnology and Nanotechnology under dynamic and visionary scientific leadership, with complete autonomy and liberal funding, if we are to make any significant progress.
Wake up Pakistan; it is already too late!
The writer is former federal minister for science and technology, former advisor on science and technology and former chairman of the Higher Education Commission.
Prof Atta-ur-Rahman has a point there., but why compare with Indians and their bollyhood, Crickethood, tecnologyhood.. IThood, Atombombhood..etc..etc.. well one has to work out., first thing is first .. get the kids out of those Islamic schools in to public schools and change curriculum...
well that is Pervez Musharraf... Hmm.. in 2012 there is going to be war again within Pakistan..
Topic: Pakistan: The Nation.. The Politics... and The Religion