BioVoice News May 2017 Issue 12 Volume 1 | Page 17

Apart from the encouraging vibes, the latest statistics too tell us that Indian business ecosystem is bubbling with the new era of startups. Particularly, the bioscience sector has witnessed a constant dynamic situation with one latest report even putting the numbers at 1022 startups during the last few years only. The report, “India’s Biotech Start-Ups Ecosystem” by the Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE) says that Rs 18,700 crore investments happened in just five years from 2012 to 2016. “There have been remarkable changes in the confidence levels of startups. The new age entrepreneurs are visibly smarter than their predecessors. Perhaps the environment is friendlier now. The government policies are encouraging with more investors turning towards the sector,” said a Delhi based Consultant of the Angel Network that has funded few startups in the space. If the home-grown praise isn’t enough, let’s read the words of Mr Yigal Erlich, Founder of Israel’s Yozma Group and the man behind startup movement in his country. “The world changed after India gave it the zero (0). India is known for its contribution to invention and innovation. There is a lot that Israel and India can learn from each other. After overseeing an entrepreneurial and innovation revolution in Israel, I am glad to be able to share our learning and interact with budding entrepreneurs and innovators of India. India is poised to become a major biotechnology hub in the world and sustained support is crucial,” he had mentioned during his visit to India last year. And the best startup city is……… The ABLE’s report puts Bangalore as the biotech start-up capital of India hosting 190 of the 1022 biotech start-ups formed in the last five years. At the same time, the National Capital Region (NCR) ranks second with 164 startups followed closely by Mumbai (163) and Hyderabad (160). So are the dynamics witnessing change. If we look at the comfort levels, the Bengaluru seems to be the first choice of most of the young. The city’s entrepreneur friendly environment has attracted them to begin operations. May be the climate is a factor too. Hyderabad which hosts the Genome Valley is another favorite spot down south. However, it hasn’t attracted the startup crowd as much as Bengaluru. Delhi being the national capital should have been the ideal choice. The metro link to Gurgaon and Noida where most of the IT companies are based, could have hosted incubators but this hasn’t really been possible until now. The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi has been the birthplace for many bioscience startups because of the presence of FITT. Last but not the least, BIOVOICENEWS.COM 17