Govt blamed for India's biotech probs

Indian government bureaucracy and policy is to blame for the domesticbiotechnology industry's failure to generate new products, says the All-India Biotechnology Association, which calls for a complete streamlining of the regulatory and product approval system.

The commitment to funding for Indian biotechnology has become risky because the approval process is complex and time-consuming, and only one recombinant product, a hepatitis B vaccine, has been approved so far, it says. Red tape and a lack of effectiveness and transparency have discouraged private-sector investment, it says, adding that the regulatory system constitutes an almost-impossible hurdle and a major deterrent to innovation and the adoption of new technology.