Telangana will implement the next phase of Genome Valley expansion on 300 acres with an investment of ₹2,000 crore, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy said at the opening session of life sciences conference ‘BioAsia 2024’ in Hyderabad on Tuesday.
In addition to announcing the expansion of the well-known research and development and clean manufacturing cluster near Hyderabad, the Chief Minister said the Government has identified locations in Vikarabad, Medak and Nalgonda to set up integrated greenfield pharma villages. The three facilities can be reached within 90 minutes from the Hyderabad International Airport and are part of the 10 such facilities the Government intends to establish with an investment of ₹1 lakh crore.
The pharma villages will be equipped with infrastructure and create opportunities for entrepreneurs and as many as five lakh new jobs, Mr. Reddy told the gathering comprising captains of industry, policymakers and experts as well as members of the scientific community.
“My government is committed to creating the ecosystem that includes policy, infrastructure and support,” he asserted, adding that in doing so the emphasis would be on driving the growth of MSMEs since they served as a bridge between startups and large corporations. Referring to his recent meeting with representatives from the pharma sector to understand their challenges, he said, “We have promised to support them in the best way we can. If you dream to reach the sky, we will ensure a rocket is in place to take you there.”
Asserting that “we in Congress [party] know the value of trust,” the Chief Minister also sought to highlight the ₹40,232 crore investment commitments Telangana had received at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year.
New policy
Citing the enthusiasm of global investors, particularly the life sciences community, to invest in Telangana, Industries and IT Minister D. Sridhar Babu said the investment commitments “talk volumes about their confidence in our governance and the new government.”
The State government will be launching “a new dynamic life sciences policy which will be a fusion between technology, life sciences, pharma, policy and regulatory agencies,” the Minister announced.
Industries and IT Secretary Jayesh Ranjan said it was the 21st edition of BioAsia and over the two decades emerged as the most sought-after event for industry globally. Expressing happiness over the Chief Minister participating in the event, the senior official said “After a long gap of many years, the Chief Minister is attending it. We look forward to listening to you on how you want to provide strategic leadership not only to our country but whole world in the field of life sciences.”
Presentation of the Genome Valley excellence award, an integral part of BioAsia, to Nobel laureate and Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Greg Semenza and signing of MoUs marked the inaugural session of the two-day conference.
