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4 BIO CONTENT BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Government’s Nano approach for
pharma industry -16

COVER
DESIGN BY:
DOMINIX STRATEGIC
DESIGN PVT. LTD.

COVERSTORY 18.........................................................................................................................................................

STEP INTO 2020 WITH CAUTION

A major transformation started coming around in 2019 in the form of the fourth industrial revolution,

Industry 4.0. It has gradually gained momentum as a blend of advanced analytics, Big Data, Robotics

& Automation, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT) and Process Digitisation across

the healthcare business value chain. Pharma, medical device and biotechnology innovators are

harnessing digital technology and the power of big data and advanced analytics to deliver a more

cost effective approach to healthcare in 2020. However, there lies a word of caution for the pharma

industry particularly with respect to the aftermath of US-China trade tensions and the 2025
upcoming US elections in 2020. This requires the industry to take appropriate and careful

steps to ensure the targeted growth.

29 2024
2023
Vision 2020-2025

2022

20 2021
2020
Industry seeks - Stable business

environment with Streamlined regulations

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com BIO CONTENT 5

SPEAKING WITH TOPVIDEO

36 Dr Dinesh Dua,
Chairman,
“Still there is no vaccine available Pharmaceutical
for use against Shigella” Export Promotion
Dr Davinder Gill, Council of India
talks about the
CEO, Hilleman Laboratories, quality issues of
New Delhi the pharma sector

37 Scan the QR Code »

“Healthcare industry is Tor Lund,
undergoing paradigm shift, President &
evolving from human-driven CEO, MIP Inc.,
to technology-enabled sector” Canada shares his
Haruto Iwata, company’s plans
for 2020 in India
Managing Director, Fujifilm India, New Delhi
Scan the QR Code »
PERSONALISED HEALTHCARE
Gnaneshwar
39 Kambali, GM,
(IIoT Strategy &
Spotlight on Comprehensive Genomic Profiling Solutions), Hitachi
India connects
TRENDING the dots for
useful application
42 of Artificial
Intelligence
Need to capitalize on
regenerative medicine
Dr Pradeep Mahajan,

CMD, StemRx Bioscience Solutions,
Mumbai

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6 BIO EDIT BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Correct the chronic shortage

Delays in hearing and deciding of court getting tested.
litigations is a problem that is discussed often Approved but unfilled vacancies add further to the
since they lead to piling of cases. But the ball
is always not in the courts’ court as was evident in the problem of having less sanctioned positions than those
recent cases against pharma companies in Gujarat. actually required affecting the functioning further.
The lawyers’ report says that in Karnataka 53 per cent
Gujarat High Court quashed proceedings against posts were vacant, followed by 27 per cent in Himachal
two pharma companies not because they were found Pradesh, 23 per cent in Tripura and 15 per cent in
innocent, but because the drug inspectors delayed the erstwhile J&K. At the centre, in the Central Drugs
legal procedure. As a result, no time was left for the Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) too, 22 per
accused manufacturing firms to re-test the medicines, cent positions were vacant.
which were allegedly spurious and substandard. The
court observed that the delays left the manufacturers The Mashelkar committee report in 2003 had said,
without their valuable right to have second opinion “The problems in the regulatory system in the country
from the labs as the drugs crossed the expiry date. were primarily due to inadequate or weak drug control
infrastructure, inadequate testing facilities, shortage
The drug inspector seized Gynotocin 1 ml injection of drug inspectors, non-uniformity of enforcement,
samples in January 2004 and government analyst sent lack of specially trained cadres for specific regulatory
its report in July 2004. The drug inspector then took areas, non-existence of data bank and non-availability
five years to trace the manufacturer. The case was filed of accurate information.” The Working Group on
in 2009. But the shelf life of the drug was over by five Drugs and Food Regulation for the 12th Five Year
years. Plan also expressed similar views and recommended
strengthening of the regulatory mechanism.
In case of Rabivin-20 tablets, samples were drawn
in February 2014. The government analyst gave Shortage of people along with other issues like
the report in October 2014. The manufacturer was not keeping records of non-compliance affects the
informed about the report just a few days back when prosecution as it becomes difficult to identify repeat
the medicine’s shelf life expired in October 2015. The offenders. The lawyers’ report pointed out that from
court criticised this slow pace of work of the inspectors. April 2015 to January 2019, Mizoram reported only
four prosecutions in 141 instances of failed compliance,
Delays in completing the legal procedures once Odisha reported only six prosecutions in 876 instances
again highlights shortage of drug inspectors. In and Jharkhand reported seven among 1,723 instances.
Gujarat, there were half the number of recommended
drug inspectors, according to a recent report by two Drug inspectors are the key in the drug regulatory
lawyers. procedure. They inspect manufacturing and selling
points and collect samples. All legal actions related
The report said that in Maharashtra there were to spurious or substandard drugs, including recalling
only one third of the recommended number of drug initiate with drug inspectors. When their number is
inspectors. Similar problem was noticed in Kerala. inadequate and further the sanctioned posts remain
A media report last year said that only 47 drug vacant bringing down the effective strength, the work
inspectors were assigned the task to monitor 21,000 obviously suffers. It is high time that the authorities
medical stores in addition to blood banks and drug acknowledge the crucial role of drug inspectors and
manufacturing units when the required strength was approve the required the required strength and fill
200 inspectors. West Bengal’s drug quality and control up vacancies as the whole issue is related to patients’
department runs with just 23 per cent of its approved safety.
strength, according to the recent Comptroller and
Auditor General (CAG) report. Due to such a shortage Milind Kokje
of human resources, most of the samples to be tested Chief Editor
and certified by drug inspectors expire in labs before
[email protected]



8 BIO MAIL BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Vol 17; Issue 12; December 2019 BIOSPECTRUM
wishes its
Acknowledgements Readers,

The article titled ‘AI will transform the way we Contributors,
diagnose and treat diseases’ authored by Zoya Brar, Advertisers
Founder & CEO, CORE Diagnostic in the December and Associates
edition has come out well. Much appreciated.

- Akanksha Negi, New Delhi

Corrigendum

In the December 2019 issue, on page no 30 and
34 the revenues for Voxtur Bio Ltd. and Genuine
Biosystem Pvt. Ltd. for 2018-19 were given as Rs 36
crore and Rs 35 crore respectively. Please read the
revenues for these companies as Rs 16.8 crore and
Rs 5.9 crore respectively. Error is regretted.

- Editor

Vol 18; Issue 1; January 2020 MM Activ Sci-Tech Communications

Publisher & Managing Editor: South Region New Delhi INTERNATIONAL
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proper enquires before



10 POLICY AND REGULATORY NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Health Ministry inks MoC with Bill Gates Foundation

Bill Gates, Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation MoHFW and M. Hari Menon, Director, India Country
(BMGF) recently met with Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Office, BMGF. Under the MoC, Gates Foundation will
Minister for Health and Family Welfare, in New Delhi. provide technical, management and program design
They presided over the signing of a Memorandum of support through its grantees and other partners,
Cooperation (MoC) between the Health Ministry and with a special focus on innovation, best practices and
the Gates Foundation. The MoC was signed by Lav enhancing performance management, while working
Agarwal, Joint Secretary (International Health) from closely with the government. The Foundation will
support the Ministry’s work towards strengthening
the primary health aspects such as reducing maternal
and child mortality, improving nutrition services
and increasing the immunization reach. Efforts
will be made to increase access to family planning
measures amongst younger women and reduce the
burden of select infectious diseases (Tuberculosis,
Visceral Leishmaniasis, Lymphatic Filariasis).
The work will also include strengthening of supply
chains and monitoring systems while focusing on
budget utilization, management and skills of human
resources for health, ultimately bolstering the entire
health system.

India, Sweden NITI Aayog focuses on
Assistive Devices Industry
unveil Healthcare
NITI Aayog has deliberated upon emerging opportunities in
Innovation Centre technological innovations, product development in assistive
devices industry and policy interventions in the country.
The Swedish Trade The existing state of affairs pertaining to disability, assistive
Commissioner’s Office in technology, allied industry and emerging opportunities in India
collaboration with the All India was discussed. Broad areas of discussion included regulatory
Institute of Medical Sciences, control and capacity building in the sector; incentivisation for
New Delhi (AIIMS, New Delhi)
and All India Institute of Medical the private players
Sciences, Jodhpur (AIIMS, to invest in the
Jodhpur) have announced industry; formulation
the launch of India-Sweden of a concrete set-
Healthcare Innovation Centre in up involving the
India. The Centre is envisioned government, private
to develop an ecosystem of industries, innovation
open innovation that healthcare centres like the IITs
delivery stakeholders can use to and the NGOs in
collaborate and address current order to transform the
and future challenges in the present reality; building
healthcare sector in India. It will and encouraging
enable development and scale entrepreneurship; an economically viable model inclusive
up of solutions through frugal of affordability, adaptability, functionality and productivity;
innovation for affordable and and strengthening indigenous R&D and promoting mass
accessible healthcare in line with manufacturing of assistive devices technology in India. The
the objectives of the Government meeting emphasized and concurred upon the much needed ice-
of India, including technology, breaker in the form of a conference on assistive devices industry,
data, protocols and processes, skill which will be the launch pad for future collaborations in the
development and business models. sector of assistive technology in India.

Delivering integrated end-to-end solutions
to the global life sciences’ industries
for the discovery and development
of life saving drugs

TCG Lifesciences at a Glance

• Global CRAMS company operating in Kolkata since 2001
• Approximately 850 qualified and trained scientists with close to 200 PhDs.
• Long experience in delivering diverse/complex synthesis and solutions
• Offers wide range of discovery, development and manufacturing services
• Caters to pharma, biotech, crop science, animal health, nutraceutical,

cosmeceutical and polymer industries
• Over 250 clients served

Corporate Office:

Block BN, Plot 7 Salt Lake Electronics Complex Sector V, Kolkata - 700091 West Bengal, India
Phone: +91 33 6600 7000 , +91 33 40007000/20 E-mail: [email protected], www.tcgls.com

12 POLICY AND REGULATORY NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

NHA partners with Switzerland
Akshaya Patra, HelpAge India
partners with
National Health Authority publicly funded health insurance/
(NHA) has inked Memorandum assurance scheme. As per the BioAsia2020
of Understanding (MoUs) with MoU, the NHA will leverage the
The Akshay Patra Foundation network of organisations to reach Switzerland is widely known
and HelpAge India to raise the potential beneficiaries for for innovation in big pharma
awareness about the ‘Ayushman their enrolment under the scheme with the presence of eminent
Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan and to raise awareness of its pharma and life-sciences
Arogya Yojana’ (PM-JAY) scheme benefits. NHA will conduct various companies like Novartis,
and beneficiary enrolment. community campaigns, parent Roche, Lonza, Ferring
Implemented by the National meetings, rallies etc., and engage Pharma, etc. The country is
Health Authority along with its with local panchayats and other looking to forge closer ties
State counterparts, PM-JAY, is community members to sensitize with India which has grown
India’s flagship public health the underprivileged community to be a significant player in
insurance/assurance scheme, about the objectives and benefits life sciences industry globally
which is also world’s largest of PM-JAY. and has now partnered with
the life sciences convention
AYUSH conducts review BioAsia, as the Country
meeting with WHO Partner for the 17th edition,
BioAsia 2020. Switzerland
A three day meeting organized by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has a thriving ecosystem
with the support of Ministry of AYUSH at Jamnagar to review the draft that’s hugely powered by
documents on Terminologies of Ayurveda, Unani & Siddha has laid a firm innovation in academia and
foundation for the globalisation efforts of these three AYUSH systems. startups. This, coupled with
The meeting was held during December 2-4, 2019 at the Institute of the ease of doing business and
Post Graduate Teaching & Research in Ayurveda (IPGT&RA), Jamnagar, policies to attract and retain
Gujarat. IPGT&RA is India’s oldest PG College for Ayurveda, and is talent, makes Switzerland
also a designated WHO Collaborating Centre for Traditional Medicine. the breeding ground for
The Standard International Terminologies Documents reviewed were cutting-edge technologies
developed by WHO as part of its global strategy to strengthen the quality, and solutions. Switzerland’s
safety and effectiveness of Traditional and Complementary Medicine strength in health tech is
(T&CM). Development of these documents is included in the Project unparalleled with over 1,400
Collaboration Agreement (PCA) on Cooperation in the field of Traditional companies employing 58,500
and Complementary Medicine under WHO strategy on T&CM covering the professionals and generating
period 2014-2023 signed between World Health Organization (WHO) and CHF 15.8 Billion in revenue
Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India. Traditional Medicines are an (in 2018). Swiss MedTech
important integral part of Universal Health Coverage Program especially industry contributes 2.3
under Sustainable Developmental Goal-3 (SDG-3) of United Nations. per cent of the country’s
GDP. The Swiss Biotech
industry alone is home to
312 companies, generating
a revenue of CHF 4 Billion
whilst investing over CHF 1.5
Billion in R&D, yearly. With
the theme of - Today For
Tomorrow - BioAsia 2020,
to be held from February
17-19, 2020 at Hyderabad,
will explore the capabilities
that Life sciences companies
should invest in Today to
thrive and create value
Tomorrow.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com COMPANY NEWS 13

Zydus unveils Bharat Biotech rolls out
affordable oral anti- ROTAVAC 5D vaccine
diabetic tablet Vinglyn
Bharat Biotech recently announced the
Zydus Cadila takes yet another step towards diabetes commercial roll-out of ROTAVAC 5D-Lowest
care with the launch of an affordable oral anti-diabetic dose volume rotavirus vaccine in the world. M
agent, Vinglyn (Vildagliptin) & Vinglyn M (Vildagliptin Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India launched
plus metformin). The drug belongs to the class of oral the vaccine in New Delhi. The first generation,
anti-diabetic agents, known as DPP4 inhibitors, which rotavirus vaccine, ROTAVAC was developed under
have shown promise in achieving glycaemic control a Public-Private Partnership with the Department
without deterioration in beta cell function and are of Biotechnology and other international partners.
one of the recent advancements in diabetes care and Developed by Bharat Biotech, oral rotavirus
management. Vinglyn and Vinglyn M will be marketed vaccine ROTAVAC 5D is safe and effective in
by Zydus Healthcare Ltd. Priced at just Rs 4.95 per the prevention of rotavirus diarrhea. ROTAVAC
tablet, which is almost 1/6th the price at which the 5D can be stored at 2-8 degree, administered
patented Vildagliptin was initially launched in India, in 5 drops. It is available in single-dose, multi-
Vinglyn is now one of the most affordable brands of dose vials and pre-filled syringes. The company
Vildagliptin for diabetic patients in India. received commercial licensure and the vaccine is
available for sale. The vaccine is safe, effective and
affordable, besides being cross-protective against
a variety of rotavirus strains. Its efficacy compares
favorably with the efficacy of the currently licensed
rotavirus vaccines in low-resource countries.

Jubilant expands drug discovery services biz

Jubilant Biosys, a Bengaluru- Noida site. The chemistry Full- is adjacent to the International
Time Equivalents (FTE) capacity Airport. A completely new drug
based subsidiary of Jubilant will be doubled and operations discovery services site will be
are expected to commence constructed in phases for further
Lifesciences Limited, has from H2 2020. The new site expansions. In addition, the
can accommodate up to 500 company has formed a new digital
announced commencement Chemistry FTE’s. The site will be business unit comprising of Bio-
designed for the highest global Informatics, Datacuration for AI/
of two expansion projects in compliance standards and deliver ML, TrialStat EDC software as
superior speed and quality in the well as discovery focused AI/ML
Greater Noida and Bengaluru. entire drug discovery process. In capabilities. This business unit
Bengaluru, Jubilant Biosys has will also further expand on the
Due to growing customer demand obtained a 10-acre plot in the new site and deliver increased
Devanahalli Industrial Park which benefits to the customers.
for its range of functional and

integrated drug discovery

services, Jubilant Biosys has

started design and construction

of brand new and state-of-the-art

chemistry services laboratories

on the existing Jubilant Greater

14 COMPANY NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Mankind Medtronic launches Mazor X
develops drug Stealth Edition in India
for pregnancy
related India Medtronic Private Limited, wholly-owned subsidiary of
complications Medtronic plc has announced the launch of the Mazor X Stealth Edition
that offers a fully-integrated procedural solution for surgical planning,
Mankind Pharma workflow, execution and confirmation of spine surgeries. Surgeons at
has launched a Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, New Delhi, have successfully performed
Dydrogesterone- the first minimally invasive spine surgery in India using the Mazor X
containing drug, for Stealth Edition Robotic-Assisted Spine Surgery System. Co-developed
treatment of pregnancy- between Medtronic and the recently acquired Mazor Robotics, the
related complications. Mazor X Stealth Edition seamlessly incorporates Stealth software
Mankind Pharma technology into the Mazor X robotic-assisted surgery platform. It is a
becomes the first Indian revolutionary new technology that uses cutting-edge software to plan
and second global the surgical procedure, then uses a robotic arm to guide implants and
company to develop instruments through the steps of the surgical process with precision,
the drug and make it while simultaneously using real-time imaging feedback to ensure the
available at an affordable plan is being carried out as desired.
price. Progesterone is a
natural hormone involved Panacea Biotec launches
in the menstrual cycle, anti-diabetes drug ViLACT
implantation, and in
successful maintenance Panacea Biotec has announced the launch of brand ViLACT in India.
of pregnancy. ViLACT is used in the treatment of Uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes
Any deficiency of Mellitus patients with HbA1c >6.5 per cent. Vildagliptin is a new oral
progesterone during antidiabetic agent that enhances pancreatic islet cell responsiveness to
different stages of the
reproductive process glucose, is an incretin enhancer, a potent
can cause infertility, and selective inhibitor of dipeptidyl
menstrual disorders peptidase-4 (DPP-4), the enzyme
and miscarriage. responsible for the rapid degradation
Dydrogesterone has of the incretin hormones glucagon-
a similar molecular like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-
structure to natural dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP).
progesterone but it has ViLACT is available in four formulations:
enhanced bioavailability ViLACT- Vildagliptin 50 mg Tablet;
and fewer side-effects. ViLACT M 500- Vildagliptin 50 mg +
It took nine years for a Metformin HCL 500 mg Tablet; ViLACT M 850-Vildagliptin 50 mg
team of 400 scientists + Metformin HCL 850 mg Tablet; and ViLACT M 1000- Vildagliptin
at Mankind Research 50 mg + Metformin HCL 1000 mg Tablet.
Centre to develop this
drug, which is the only
retroprogesterone
available commercially.
The manufacturing
process of
Dydrogesterone is very
complex as it involves
the conversion of natural
progesterone.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com FINANCE NEWS 15

Eris buys Zomelis from Novartis AG for $13M

Gujarat based Eris Indian market. Eris is among the This is the first innovator
Lifesciences has top 10 players in the anti-diabetes pharmaceutical product
announced the drugs segment in the Indian trademark acquisition by
acquisition of the Pharmaceutical Market (IPM). Eris. The company did
trademark Zomelis four acquisitions earlier.
(for Vildagliptin based In December 2017, Eris
formulations) and its acquired the branded
associated trademarks business portfolio of
from Novartis AG, Strides Shasun in a deal
Switzerland for a worth Rs 500 crore gaining
consideration of $13 a foothold, inter-alia, in
million. Zomelis is used the CNS drug segment.
in the treatment of type Three earlier acquisitions
2 diabetes and comes of UTH, Kinedex and
under a new class of anti-diabetic Amay Pharma (trademarks)
drugs known as DPP 4 inhibitors. provided entry for Eris in the
The company will start selling the nutraceuticals, women health,
product from December 10 in the IVF, etc.

NephroPlus Merck inks $2.7B
raises Rs 323 crore acquisition deal with ArQule
for expansion
Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and
Setting sights on expanding their services Canada, and US based ArQule, Inc. have announced that
in dialysis care, NephroPlus, India’s largest the companies have entered into a definitive agreement
dialysis center network is foraying into under which Merck, through a subsidiary, will acquire
international markets beginning with West ArQule for $20 per share in cash for an approximate
Asia and South East Asia. The center which total equity value of $2.7 billion. ArQule is a publicly
is focused at redefining dialysis treatment, traded biopharmaceutical company focused on kinase
received an investment of Rs 323 crore from inhibitor discovery and development for the treatment
Investcorp, a Bahrain based, Global alternative of patients with cancer and other diseases. ArQule’s
asset management company. With a footprint lead investigational candidate, ARQ 531, is a novel,
of a notable dialysis network in the country oral Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor currently
with over 200 centers, NephroPlus has been in a Phase 2 dose expansion study for the treatment of
providing cost effect treatments to over 14,000 B-cell malignancies. Under the terms of the acquisition
dialysis patients. With the latest investment, the agreement, Merck, through a subsidiary, will initiate a
company is looking at expanding beyond their tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of ArQule.
current presence in 20 states of India. The funds The closing of the tender offer will be subject to certain
will further be for acquisitions and partnerships conditions, including the tender of shares representing
commencing with Indonesia, the Philippines, at least a majority of the total number of ArQule’s
Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. A contract outstanding shares, the expiration of the waiting period
with Vietnam is currently underway and will under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements
be effective within the next two- three months. Act and other customary conditions.
The focus for the Indian market will continue
to develop through the dialysis programmes
currently on track at 180 hospitals and
will subsequently continue through select
acquisitions and expansion of centers; joint
ventures and new operation and maintenance
contracts will also be set in motion.

16 START UP NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Medikabazaar Zumutor Biologics raises $4M
to enable pivotal milestones
secures
US headquartered biotech strategy is focused on Natural
Rs 112 Cr startup Zumutor Biologics with Killer (NK) cell activating
its R&D facility in Bengaluru, targets. The startup’s first-in-
in Series B has raised $4 million in series class lead molecule, ZM 008
A2 funding taking its total has made industry validated
Medikabazaar, India’s raise to $20 million. The progress and is poised for IND
largest online B2B platform round includes funding by new filing with Phase 1a/1b clinical
for medical supplies, investor Bharat Innovation trials likely to commence end
recently secured Rs 112 Fund (BIF) with participation 2020. This Series A 2 funding
crore during a Series B from its existing investor, Accel will enable pivotal milestones
funding round, led by Partners. Zumutor’s growth in development stages.
healthcare-centric VC firm,
Health Quad, Ackermans GE Healthcare picks
& van Haaren, a diversified startups for Edison platform
group from Belgium,
Rebright Partners & GE Healthcare has announced the First Cohort of their first startup
Toppan Printing Co limited collaboration program on the Edison platform, Edison[X] - Startups
from Japan in its maiden powered by GE Healthcare’. Six start-ups- Synapsica, DeepTek,
start up investment in 5C Network, Cancer Moonshot, ORBO AI and Predible have been
India. Existing investors
CBC, Elan Corporation, shortlisted for developing solutions on the
Mitsui Sumitomo Edison platform for some of the toughest
Insurance Venture Capital, healthcare challenges existing today. The
Kois Invest from Belgium, applications received were screened through
angel investors Sunil Kalra a three-stage process and the shortlisted
and Arun Venkatachalam entries were evaluated based on the strength
also participated in the of the business idea/plan, maturity and the
round with few other closeness to productize their solution, team
prominent angel investors. capabilities and relevance to defined focus
The funding is in-line with areas among others. Edison[X] - Startups
Medikabazaar’s plans powered by GE Healthcare is providing a zero-equity cash-in-grant
for rapid expansion and of $10000 to each of the selected startups. In addition, they will have
product diversification, access to mentorship, skill development programs, commercial and
with a target of $100 regulatory guidance, and data provision as additional benefits.
million in revenue and
5X growth by the end
of the current financial
year. The funds from the
current round will be used
to augment its technology
capabilities and supply
chain infrastructure as
well as building its team
strength. The company’s
current focus is on
optimizing its fulfilment
capabilities for better
delivery management,
especially across Tier 2,
Tier 3 cities and rural
areas.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com START UP NEWS 17

Arvi launches at-home medical alert system

Conceptualized by Indian buttons’ at all critical locations
Institute of Technology (IIT) of the house. When a senior
- Bombay alumni, health tech citizen pushes a button during
startup Arvi has launched a an emergency, a smart hub
smart medical alert system for automatically triggers phone
senior citizens in India. The and SMS alerts to relatives and
smart medical alert system neighbors. Additionally, the
offers emergency and non- Arvi support team dispatches
emergency medical assistance an emergency ambulance and
with doorstep convenience for arranges a hotline between
senior citizens. It aims to make senior citizens and an emergency
healthcare easy, instant and doctor. Arvi support team also
accessible for senior citizens. It provides assistance in non-
is currently offering its services emergency scenarios such as
in Telangana and Andhra scheduling medicines delivery,
Pradesh. Arvi installs a smart doctor-on-call appointments,
medical alert system with ‘push health checkups at home, etc.

Wellness Venture Catalysts
startup SARVA invests in WonDRx
gathers Rs 20 Cr
Venture Catalysts has about important dosage
SARVA, Yoga Studio Chain has raised invested an undisclosed and other critical verbal
Rs 20 crore in its first institutional amount in heathtech instructions given by the
financing round led by Fireside startup WonDRx as part doctor as well as to educate
Ventures. The funds would be utilized of its seed round. The about health issues that you
towards retail expansion, marketing startup plans to utilise are suffering from. It also
and launching an integrated digital funding to provide AI-based allows one to see various
service. SARVA also plans to double its healthcare solutions for all healthcare service providers
retail footprint in the next 12 months stakeholders. Mumbai-based around them to connect
and is eyeing Mumbai and Bengaluru as WonDRx is a prescription with instantly. The startup
its key expansion markets. A disruptor digitising firm that organises offers three integrated apps
in the fitness and wellness category, handwritten Rx or receipts - WonDRx Doctor App,
SARVA is focusing on the millennial without forcing any change WonDRx Consumer App (for
population. With 25 different forms of of behavior for any doctor. patients/consumers), and
practices, the venture plans to make It has audios and videos WonDRx Provider App (for
yoga popular amongst the urban youth. embedded in it to inform any healthcare provider).
SARVA has rapidly grown since its
inception and runs studios across two
formats: Diva Yoga and Sarva Yoga.

18 COVER STORY BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

STEP INTO

2020
WITH CAUTION
A major transformation started As we enter 2020, digital technologies hold
coming around in 2019 in the form the potential to improve quality, affordability
of the fourth industrial revolution, and accessibility of healthcare solutions,
Industry 4.0. It has gradually gained thus reshaping health care delivery all the way. As a
momentum as a blend of advanced result, companies are taking prominent steps towards
analytics, Big Data, Robotics & customer engagement, and operational efficiency in
Automation, Artificial Intelligence, R&D, manufacturing, supply chain and marketing.
Internet of Things (IoT) and Process In particular, pharma companies are adopting
Digitisation across the healthcare holistic platforms to deliver the desired outcomes
business value chain. Pharma, to all stakeholders, while also capturing value for
medical device and biotechnology
innovators are harnessing digital
technology and the power of big data
and advanced analytics to deliver
a more cost effective approach to
healthcare in 2020. However, there
lies a word of caution for the pharma
industry particularly with respect to the
aftermath of US-China trade tensions
and the upcoming US elections in
2020. This requires the industry to take
appropriate and careful steps to ensure
the targeted growth.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com COVER STORY 19

themselves in the form of access to useful data and be addressed effectively not only by bringing in
trusted relationships. major changes in mainstream healthcare but also by
developing a multipronged approach that includes
“The future of technology in life sciences is very the use of cutting-edge technologies providing last
bright. Generic drug manufacturers can leverage new mile solutions. The market is ripe with innovations
technologies such as robotics process automation in digital healthcare solutions and health-conscious
(RPA), artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, etc. Indians are ready to explore”, points out Neha
to build more efficient, integrated, automated and Rastogi, Co-Founder and COO, Agatsa.
compliant manufacturing and supply chain systems
that meet global quality and regulatory requirements. To develop solutions towards the growing disease
Biosimilars and specialist drug producers can burden in India, pharma and biotech companies
leverage new technologies to bring more efficiencies are focusing on innovative ideas. But this requires
in the R&D function, starting from drug discovery to capabilities to improve efficiency in drug discovery
conducting clinical trials. The future value of many and the clinical trial process, and also to generate real
global life sciences companies is increasingly linked world data to demonstrate improved outcomes. “The
to their ability to unlock the power of data”, shares rapidly growing population and economy, and the
Sriram Shrinivasan Life Sciences Leader, EY India. changing epidemiological profile of India have given
rise to higher demand for drugs and vaccines. India is
Citing a similar perspective on the future of among the world producers of vaccines and generics.
technology in healthcare, Haruto Iwata, Managing Increasingly we are also seeing Indian life sciences
Director, Fujifilm India says, “The overall healthcare companies venturing into research and development
industry is undergoing a paradigm shift, evolving of innovative molecules”, highlights Benoit Opsomer,
from a human-driven to a technology-enabled Vice President & Head of Bio Process, Life Science
sector. In the coming year, we expect technologies business, APAC, Merck.
like Artificial Intelligence to usher radical changes in
diagnosing and screening of diseases which will help Focusing on the potential of the
in early detection and cure”. biopharmaceutical sector, Gaurav Kaushik, MD
& CEO, Meteoric Biopharmaceuticals comments,
With an increasing number of people suffering “The year 2020 looks highly promising for the
from chronic and lifestyle-related diseases such biopharmaceutical sector. According to the Mordor
as diabetes, hypertension and obesity, the country Intelligence report, the global biopharmaceuticals
is now witnessing a shift in focus from treating market was valued at $237 billion in 2018 and is
disease to preventing its onset with the help of estimated to be valued at $388 billion in 2024,
technology. “The alarming rise of cardiovascular witnessing a CAGR of 8.59 per cent. This growth
is attributed to acceptance of biopharmaceuticals
diseases in India is posing a huge challenge due to economic and sustainable ability to discover
to the healthcare fraternity. This issue can and produce innovative treatments and biological
solutions as demanded globally.”

In sync with this thought, Dr Chaitra Harsha, MD,
Vipragen adds, “With a predicted growth of Indian
pharmaceuticals market to the tune of $55 billion in
2020, this market will be comparable to all developed
markets other than the US, Japan and China. We see
2020 as a plethora of opportunities to explore in the
area of drug development. We expect more and more
of pharma services to be outsourced to India.”

Adding further deliberation, Dr Rajnish Bharti,
General Manager, Promega Biotech says, “The
biotech and pharma industry will grow at rate of
10- 12 per cent in 2020. It will be important for us
to continue to innovate, adapt, capture new market
trends and seek new opportunities so we can remain
relevant in this dynamic global market. Mergers and
acquisitions have become the most common trends
in this industry, and we will see some positive and
negative impacts of the same in the New Year. In
2020, there will also be an increase of digitalisation

20 COVER STORY BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

in the life sciences industry through online INDUSTRY
assessment, purchasing goods online and utilizing SEEKS -
digital lab practices. Ongoing pricing pressures, STABLE
increasing access to drugs, growth of gene and
cell therapies and uncertain trade policies will BUSINESS
further change the dynamics of the market.” ENVIRONMENT

In midst of technological advancements, WITH
counted as a major development for the healthcare STREAMLINED
industry is the New Drugs and Clinical Trial Rules, REGULATIONS
2019 issued by the Health Ministry. “The New
Clinical Trial Rules that were released in March Over the years, the government has been
this year have introduced great clarity and speed in taking steps to augment the growth of the
the entire regulatory approval process for clinical healthcare industry. At the same time the
trials. Due to this, we expect India to be included industry is laying down massive plans for its
in more global clinical trials which will help in growth in the next five years (2020-2025).
developing drugs for the unmet medical needs of
our patients. The indicators for this are already But this industry vision requires support
visible where more than 150 clinical trials have from the government. There are a number of
been approved by the Indian regulators so far in areas such as R&D funding, taxation regime,
2019”, shares Dr Chirag Trivedi, President, Indian regulations, skilled workforce, affordable and
Society for Clinical Research. accessible healthcare delivery that are calling

Although positive developments are setting for the government’s attention. A complete
new trends for the pharma and biotech sector in ecosystem can only be built by evolving from a
2020, there lies a word of caution particularly linear model to a more complex dynamic chain
with respect to the aftermath of US-China trade
tensions. Indian pharma companies have been with multiple inter-linkages enabled by public
dependent on drug intermediates produced private partnership.
by Chinese firms, owing to the latter’s cheaper
prices. However, due to trade tensions with the The year 2019 started with good note for
US, China can exit low value-added chemicals healthcare industry which is having over 3000
manufacturing leading India with no other startups and SMEs. The Union Minister for
alternative but to make those raw materials Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman in
locally. On the other hand, the trade war can give her maiden budget for 2019-2020 laid emphasis on
India a window of opportunity to expand the MSMEs and startups particularly. The key highlights
industry as well, which is yet to be seen. “2020 included- Capital gains exemptions from sale of
could be a momentous and an inflection year for residential house for investment in startups extended
the global economy. The key driver for global till FY21; ‘Angel tax’ issue resolved- startups and
growth has been the strength of the US economy. investors filing requisite declarations and providing
However, after almost a decade-long expansion information in their returns not to be subjected to
of the US economy, a recession might be around any kind of scrutiny in respect of valuations of share
the corner. Pivotal events such as US/UK premiums; Funds raised by startups to not require
elections, global trade wars and high worldwide
unemployment or unrest could have profound
impact in 2020 and beyond”, comments Swapan
Bhattacharya, MD, TCG Lifesciences.

Nevertheless, companies are geared up
with new strategies for 2020 hoping that the
government will support the industry by taking
supportive measures in the areas such as R&D
funding, taxation regime, regulations, skilled
workforce, affordable and accessible healthcare
delivery.

Dr Manbeena Chawla
[email protected]
(Inputs from Kalyani Sharma and Jyoti Pandey)

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com COVER STORY 21

scrutiny from Income Tax Department; E-verification C, CEO, Bioagile Therapeutics says, “We expect
mechanism for establishing identity of the investor some reduction on corporate taxes for startups and
and source of funds; Special administrative GST percentage should also be reduced.”
arrangements for pending assessments and grievance
redressal; No inquiry in such cases by the Assessing Elaborating further on the taxation regime, Dr
Officer without obtaining approval of the supervisory Vishal G. Warke, Director, Cell culture &
officer; No scrutiny of valuation of shares issued Immunology, HiMedia Laboratories points
to Category-II Alternative Investment Funds; and out, “The government can redefine the tax / duty
Relaxation of conditions for carry forward and set structures by decreasing the cost of raw materials
off of losses. In fact, just months after presenting used for biosimilar manufacture and increase the cost
her maiden budget that was hailed as development- of final products such as media thereby ultimately
friendly, the finance minister announced cutting helping in cost reduction. This in turn would enhance
corporate tax rate to 25.17 per cent. affordability of treatment of diseases like cancer, etc.”

Although satisfied with these developments Supporting this outlook, Gaurav Kaushik,
to some extent, the industry expects much more MD & CEO, Meteoric Biopharmaceuticals
certainty from the government in the year 2020. comments, “Government should look into making the
“Government support in building the startup essential medicines tax free, for instance medicines
infrastructure, resource investment and other policy of Diabetes, Blood Pressure and medicines that
regulations can be critical in determining the pace are required to cure rare and chronic diseases like
of an industry faced with high competition and ADHD, down syndrome, progeria, thalassemia,
deteriorating growth. It should kick start a new cancer, dyslexia, HIV etc. among children. Unlike
wave of regulatory and policy level interventions to other industries, a product released in pharma
foster innovation locally. These include changes in industry needs years to reach the consumer. In this
approval process, rationalizing clinical trial data, scenario, the companies who are investing huge
creating guidelines for digital healthcare among amounts into drug discovery, the taxes should be
others. Rewarding incremental innovation, both curbed and more grants should be introduced.”
on drugs and packaging of devices can also be a
favourable initiative. A stable business environment Adding his views Vikas Bagaria, Founder,
with streamlined regulations is critical to attract Pee Safe says, “The idea is to simplify the taxation
foreign capital”, shares Dr Chaitra Harsha, MD, process and make early stage funding easier.
Vipragen. Adding her thoughts on this note, Divya While the government has done well in facilitating
foreign investments in India, this outlook needs
to be maintained going forward for effectively
promoting more innovations under the Make in India
campaign.”

In sync with this notion, Neha Rastogi, Co-
Founder & COO, Agatsa mentions “While the
market for healthcare startups and digital healthcare
devices is robust, we need more support from
the government in order to promote indigenous
innovations and promote initiatives such as mass
procurement of Indian born technologies and provide
an impetus to domestic device manufacturers.
We would like to see the government procure
more Indian products from the market so that our
dependency on foreign imports can be brought down
to a minimum. This will not only boost the Indian
startup niche but also make healthcare services more
affordable for the common people.”

This point takes us back to another
announcement made in the Union Budget in 2019
highlighting the National Research Foundation
(NRF). The government has taken a grand step in the
form of the NRF which shall provide an extraordinary
direction for consolidation and expansion of
research, technology development and technology
led innovation, and a new fillip for fulfillment of

22 COVER STORY BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Industry Expects to applied research. However, the fruits of applied
research will only come if there is an investment in
● Investment in basic research basic research without asking for quick returns. The
● Streamlined regulations industry believes that most of the biotech parks are
● More public-private partnerships more congenial to biotech services and diagnostics
● To promote drug development firms, as against pure-play biotech manufacturing
● Absorption of new vaccines companies. On the employability side, there is a need
● Skilled workforce to revamp the course structure and design of biotech
● Revamp of academic sector education to improve the quality of graduating
● Simplified taxation regimes students to enable them to get the right kind of jobs.
● Better startup infrastructure India has many assets in its strong pool of scientists
● More initiative like Government e-marketplace and engineers, vast institutional network and cost-
effective manufacturing. There are over a hundred
the vision of Prime Minister’s New India. As stated National Research Laboratories employing thousands
of scientists. About 300,000 postgraduates and
in the Union Budget, NRF will ensure that overall 1500 PhDs qualify in biosciences and engineering
each year. These resources need to be effectively
research ecosystem in the country is strengthened marshaled, championed and synergized to create a
productive enterprise.”
with focus on identified thrust areas relevant to our
In sync with this observation, Praveen Gupta
national priorities and towards basic science without adds, “The government should create massive
infrastructure to carry large scale studies in India
duplication of efforts and expenditure. thereby building skilled workforce.”

Sharing her observations in this context, Zoya Moving further, the industry is highly concerned
about the regulatory environment in India in
Brar, MD & CEO, CORE Diagnostics states, various sectors. “We need to get infrastructure
status from the government for healthcare with
“Our one expectation from the government is to fund fast-track regulatory and other approvals. The
cost of providing healthcare is rising and the
a very large-scale population Genomics study. A $100 government needs to ensure that private healthcare
is protected and supported in the country”, points out
genome is already a possibility in the near term. A Suresh Ramu, Co-Founder & CEO, Cytecare
Hospitals.
$10 genome is also on the innovation road map of
Sharing his perspective from the pharma side,
many Silicon Valley companies. India should take a Subramaniam Alagu, Managing Director,
West India mentions, “The pharma and biopharma
lead in both making it happen and in harnessing its industry are evolving and with the focus on
innovation and technology, the pace of change for the
power for our country.” industry is significant. Government support through
relative regulations, faster clearances and simplified
While Praveen Gupta, MD, Premas Life processes are always welcome as they help boost the
industry at an overall level.”
Sciences says, “The government should identify
Adding further concerns, Benoit Opsomer,
and fund large scale globally impactful moon shot Vice President & Head of Bio Process, Life

projects in biological research to leapfrog Indian Science business, APAC,
Merck says, “Regulations
research to dominance in certain areas where we

have strengths by utilising our massive genetic

diversity”.

Likewise, Adarsh Desai, MD, Infinita

Biotech feels that government should further ease

out the process of giving grants or subsidies for R&D.

“This could help any biotech company like ours to

further the R&D programme at a lightning speed”, he

adds.

Dr Rajnish Bharti, GM, Promega Biotech

emphasizes on more points and says, “Over the

years, the focus of research has

slowly shifted from fundamental

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com COVER STORY 23

in the country have transformed over the years but FDA equivalent certifications. These are essential

this change has been on a slow pace. Considering for indigenously manufactured medical devices to

the talent and opportunity for pharmaceutical compete with products from other countries. The

manufacturing, the government can speed up this Government can set up a process to fast track the

change with effective implementation of quality quality compliance process.”

standards for the Indian and export market. Vazirani puts further emphasis on the

Government is keen to boost the Indian life science Government e-marketplace initiative and adds, “The

industry. However, the industry needs more Government e-marketplace (GeM) can be a game

support in terms of infrastructure, talent pool changer to make public procurement of diagnostic

creation, financial help for technology acquisition equipment transparent, inclusive and efficient.

and expensive clinical trials. This will prove to be a Make in India should be given preference through

significant boost to the Indian pharma and biologics GeM portal by giving preference to products and

Industry.” services of India.” Supporting this viewpoint, Dr.

Commenting on the existing regulatory S. Jhaveri, CEO & Founder, Biomall feels that

limitations, Ajay Bhardwaj, CEO, Anthem GeM initiative can prove fruitful for the laboratory

Biosciences says, “Government needs to streamline supply chain management as well. “The purchase

laws regarding restrictions of working with procedure in laboratories is still largely laced with

Genetically Modified Organisms for therapeutics, bureaucracy and we hope that in future scientists

abolish the straight-jacket provisions of National can directly order their purchases online without

Biodiversity Law, and make the process of approval going through much red tape. This would bring

of biologics in the country transparent and more in lot more transparency in the purchase and also

approachable.” reduce the purchase-sale cycle timeline significantly

Pavan Mocherla, MD, BD India/South thereby helping Indian scientists get lab purchases in

Asia reflects upon the regulatory aspect of the a timely manner and being globally competitive. The

medtech sector and points out, “The current phase Government e-marketplace GeM is a good initiative

of the present government including 2020 is an and many such initiatives would certainly be helpful.”

inflection point for healthcare. If the government, Representing the biopharma sector, Dr Krishna

can implement Trade Margin Rationalisation (TMR) Ella, CMD, Bharat Biotech adds, “We just want

successfully; managing not to damage any one the government to absorb the newly launched vaccine

stakeholder group, this will be a progress for patients in the market and in the system.”

and affordable healthcare access. If Government Among other sectors, the industry players are

can implement regulation for medical devices, it looking forward for encouragement in the clinic

will be another major piece coming into place in our research space as well. “We do hope that the

healthcare progress. We expect the government to government will continue to support the ease of

create a level playing field as opposed to favoring doing business in the clinical research sector. At the

only local manufacturers, create consistent and same time, we believe there should be appropriate

predictable policies and regulatory environment, and governance over operational aspects to ensure

drive better standards for quality patient care.” seamless implementation of the new regulations”,

In addition, Suresh Vazirani, CMD, shares Suneela Thatte, Head, RDS India,

Transasia-Erba Group says, “The declassification IQVIA.

of devices from drugs is something that needs Projecting few more expectations in the clinical

to be urgently looked into. Policymakers need to research sector, Dr Chirag Trivedi, President,

consider structuring a Medical Device Law that Indian Society for Clinical Research says,

separates drugs from devices. The government “By releasing the New Clinical Trial Rules earlier

can play an important role in enabling this year, the government has given a loud and

quality standards through FDA or clear message that it intends to

24 COVER STORY BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

promote drug development in India though ethical “Government should initiate more robust vision care
and good quality clinical trials. To achieve this programs in the country, supporting to subsidise the
goal, all concerned stakeholders viz., the industry, input cost of implants, and medical consumables,
government, policy makers, regulators, hospitals, enabling private players also to participate in the
doctors, ethics committees, etc. will need to work eye care schemes. The reimbursement model of
together to develop our ecosystem which will help vision care of many state governments and central
facilitate drug development in India.” government schemes, are not very attractive to
private players, mainly due to low rates, and longer
Dr GSK Velu, CMD, Neuberg Diagnostics credit period, which affects the quality and cash
supports these points and elaborates, “Public Private flows of private eye care providers. If there is a
Partnership initiatives, Stricter regulatory framework proper mechanism with mutual understanding of
for ethical practices and compulsory quality the provider, and the facilitator, vision care can be
accreditation requirements to operate Clinical Labs/ aggressively pursued in all peripheries, of every state,
Diagnostics establishments are the key to a healthy to create a Healthy, visionary India.”
and compliant diagnostics services sector which will
ultimately benefit the overall healthcare provisioning “The government has to support companies by
in our country and will help us achieve the goal of changing their mindset to that of a payer, especially
“Universal Quality Healthcare“ for the entire Indian in Public-private partnerships. The delivery
population. We need the Government, NGOs and mechanism from the centre to states and the
Private Sector organisations to work in tandem with distribution by the states need to be strengthened.
each other with trust, transparency and respect for Also, while interest rates have come down, the
each other to benefit the entire population of our dissemination of credit or credit offtake is not high
country.” enough. Healthcare generally being CAPEX intensive
requires the funding support to be able to reach
“Indian heaIthcare system is one of the most underserved locations which the government needs
efficient and affordable ecosystem in the world. In to ensure”, mentions Arjun Ananth, CEO &
addition to providing patient care services this is Whole Time Director, Medall Diagnostics.
also providing direct and indirect employment to a
very large number of population. The government On how the government can speed up the growth
should help the healthcare sector by assuring all of the industry Swapan Bhattacharya, MD,
stakeholders of a supportive and encouraging TCG Lifesciences says, “The best example of how
environment for investment and business”, adds Dr a government can catalyze and provide positive
Mradul Kaushik, Senior Director, Operations momentum to the rapid development of the pharma
and Planning, Max Healthcare. or biotech sector is China. They undertook a wide
range of approaches, which are well-documented,
Taking this perspective ahead, Sudheer S, COO, to incentivize the biotech entrepreneurs to build
MaxiVision Group of Eye Hospitals, says, up this industry from scratch. As a result, they
have overtaken their more established rivals like
Japan and EU countries and today ranks at #2 drug
innovator in the world. It will be worthwhile for the
Indian government to explore such measures and
bring in some of their best practices into our policy
initiatives to help speed up the growth of this vital
segment.”

Although the industry is laying down massive
plans for its growth in the next five years (2020-
2025), it requires support from the government.
There are a number of areas such as R&D funding,
taxation regime, regulations, skilled workforce,
affordable and accessible healthcare delivery that are
calling for the government’s attention.

Hoping to get the required support and
encouragement from the government, the industry
shares its elaborate plans for the next five years.
Coming up ahead are the key agendas of the leading
players in the biopharma, biosuppliers, bioservices,
diagnostics, startups space for 2020-2025.

2020 Editorial Calender

January February Biospectrum

New Year issue Govt efforts to reduce cancer diease burden Awards
Plans and new rends for 2020 Status of cancer research & drug discovery 2020
Budget expectations Budget coverage
Some current topic Animal experiment related problems INDIA EDITION
www.biospectrumindia.com
March April
www.biospectrumasia.com
Anniversary issue Education institute ranking
Women in top positions Why students not getting jobs www.nuffoodsspectrum.in
Target zero TB; Five years left Immunisation week - Scope for Vaccines market,
Dialysis market delivery methods www.agrospectrumindia.com

May June www.nuffoodsspectrum.asia

Small sector in healthcare not included Supplier ranking
in MSME IT technologies providing support for drug
Hypertension market discovery R&D
Genetic testing status M&A scene in India

July August

Biopharma ranking Big tech companies' support to lifescience
Hepititis update - India's contribution sector startups
Doctors' safety on World Doctors' Day Healthcare Parks
Incubation centres in India
September
October
CRO ranking
CVR diseases New varients in existing diseases
World Alzheimer's Day - Article Biosimilar status
R&D spending by big pharmas Polio
Mental health
November
December
Readers' special
Dibetes Vision 2020 status
Technology transfer in Pharma, healthcare
industries and R&D
Innovation in assisted technologies

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BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com VISION 2020-2025 29

STARTUP GET INVOLVED IN BIOFUELS
We plan to actively get involved
INITIATE NEW in the biofuels sector by providing
ENTREPRENEURSHIP our specialised enzymatic
CENTRES solutions. We also plan to put a lot
Centre for Cellular and Molecular of focus on waste management
Platforms (C-CAMP) has tied up such as solid waste management
with many international partners and waste water treatment. We also intend to strengthen
in 2019 in areas as varied as the agriculture industry by proving our 100 per cent
agriculture to healthcare and Antimicrobial Resistance. organic enzymes based solutions right from for plant
We plan to leverage upon these collaborations to growth management to pest management.
promote and nurture a pipeline of exciting innovations - Adarsh Desai, MD, Infinita Biotech, Vadodara
from India for global markets. We are looking to increase
our incubation space. In 2020 we will also officially EXPAND WEARABLE
launch our National Rapid Prototyping Facility (uFab) SOLUTION PORTFOLIO
for medtech startups supported by National BioPharma We see 2020 as a promising
Mission. Given our growing portfolio of nutrition, year for the health-tech industry
regenerative therapy, rare diseases, clean technology and are planning to expand our
startups, we will initiate new dedicated entrepreneurship wearable solutions portfolio with
centres to enable startups in niche areas to expand varied solutions that go beyond
beyond niche markets. We are looking for more just cardiac care. With strong capital infusion coming
opportunities to connect with the global innovation in and our product SanketLife all set to be CE and FDA
ecosystem so that we can attempt to address global certified, we are targeting a global audience. Agatsa is
issues glocally;. We are also spreading our wings beyond also working on expanding the wearable technology
Tier I cities. An example would be our BIRAC Regional horizon to cover 17 different non-communicable diseases
Entrepreneurship Centre, BREC programme that has including diabetes, epilepsy, obesity and neuropathy.
connected 1000 startups from 33 states and UTs in India. Soon we will arrive with our next-gen device that will
A few new programmes in maternal and child health, enable patients and doctors to detect and monitor
geriatric healthcare, nutrition, stem cell therapy, rare several lifestyle ailments at less than half of the current
diseases, clean technology are in the works. We need to cost with the touch of a button.
institute more Centres of Excellence focusing on each of - Neha Rastogi, Co-Founder & COO, Agatsa, Noida
the above in partnership with the government to nurture
innovations that could be potential game changers in INNOVATE MEN
these sectors. HYGIENE PRODUCTS
- Dr Taslimarif Saiyed, CEO & Director, C-CAMP, Bangalore We are working towards raising
awareness on men’s personal
CREATE NEW JOB hygiene and apart from the
OPPORTUNITIES existing products, we will come up
Our strategies for 2020-2025 would with more categories in the year
be to make IVF affordable for the ahead. Seeing the audience that Pee Safe and its products
masses by curating low cost cycles. have received, we are sure 2020 is going to be an exciting
Further, our aim would be to learn year for us. We have seen some excellent growth and will
and adopt newer techniques, continue to keep our momentum going in the coming
which will pave the way for better outcomes and reduce year as well. We want to take our products to smaller cities
both psychological and economic burden on patients. such as Bhubaneshwar, Dehradun, Cochin and Haridwar.
Considering the rapid growth in this industry, we plan to Our strategy includes targeting places frequented by
multiply our clinic presence across the country. As of now metro dwellers, such as malls and city centre after some
we are present in 4 locations, and are expecting to reach focused campaigning on social media, airports and other
about 3 new locations each year. Thus we not only aim to platforms. While the brand has so far been a frontrunner
treat infertility, but also create new job opportunities as well in women’s hygiene products, we are bringing in
as business opportunities for our staff and other associates. innovations in the men’s hygiene segment as well.
- Dr Sahil Gupta, Founder, Aveya IVF, New Delhi - Vikas Bagaria, Founder, Pee Safe, Gurgaon

30 VISION 2020-2025 BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

DIAGNOSTIC/ MEDTECH network will continue to play an important role in
equipping these centres, right from on-boarding to
FOCUS ON SCREENING training. The year 2020 will also open the gates for
BASED SOLUTION APPROACH exports for Transasia due to our expanded sales and
In 2020, we at Fujifilm aim to service network in over 100 countries. We are planning
provide advanced imaging aggressive strategies to push our growth agenda. We
solutions in the medical sector have identified three pillars of growth – first would
to the common people of be to strengthen and grow our existing customer
India by associating with the relationships; second is to scale up our production
government’s Ayushman Bharat initiate. As we continue base and third is to strengthen our product portfolio
to chart our business roadmap in India for 2020-25, with new product launches. We will continue to
we will be focusing on a screening-based solution focus on becoming a total solutions provider for our
approach, to make concerted efforts towards curbing customers. Our belief is that this will drive integration
ever growing and life threatening diseases like breast and create long-term sustainable growth for us in
cancer, tuberculosis, and lung & colon cancer at an early this space. We have a host of products in the pipeline
stage. We intent to manufacture and deliver Computed and will soon roll-out new products in molecular
Radiology and Digital Radiology at a lower cost in line testing. Our plan is to expand our avenues for testing
with government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative to offer of infectious diseases, a growing concern for India
affordable health services to a large part of its population. and the emerging countries. In the coming few years,
In the coming years, these advanced technology we aim to become a total solutions provider, only the
products will help in digitization of X-rays, resulting in fourth globally. In this context, Transasia is looking at
paperless transactions in hospitals. foraying into new overseas markets such as Brazil and
- Haruto Iwata, MD, Fujifilm India, Gurgaon Russia through greenfield manufacturing units to roll
out affordable solutions to those markets. We are also
CONTINUE INVESTMENT IN doubling our R&D spend to achieve this objective.
NEW-GEN TECHNIQUES
In line with our vision we will - Suresh Vazirani, CMD, Transasia-Erba Group, Mumbai
continue to invest heavily in
new generation techniques MAKE MEDICINE MORE 202
like genomics, proteomics, PRECISE
metabolomics, molecular Healthcare providers are faced
diagnostics and digital pathology to aid the evolving new with the challenge of rising costs
field of personalised medicine and precision diagnostics. and varying quality. Our focus is
Neuberg Diagnostics wants to be a $200 to 250 million to improve outcomes and lower
revenues group by 2025 by having significant presence costs. We aim to achieve this by
in South Asia, Middle East and African region and making medicine more precise, keeping value at the
technology incubators for new generation techniques in heart of care delivery, enabling care providers to treat
USA and Europe. patients as consumers and by digitalizing healthcare.
- Dr GSK Velu, CMD, Neuberg Diagnostics, Chennai This will help us in becoming a long-term trusted
strategic partner, enabling transformational changes to
DOUBLE R&D SPEND healthcare providers.
It is interesting to note - Gerd Hoefner, MD & President,
that with the Government Siemens Healthcare, Bangalore
becoming aware of great need
for prevention of disease and 2021
hence focusing
on taking
primary healthcare to the grassroot
level, the tier II – IV cities and towns
are also setting up basic diagnostic
facilities. Transasia with its wide

2020range of analyzers and a wide service

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com VISION 2020-2025 31

PHARMA/BIOPHARMA been the focus country. We have started intensifying our
efforts to make sure our exports go to these two blocks

particularly Japan and China which are two very large

FIVE VACCINES IN PIPELINE markets. We have three prompt strategies of making

In next five years, I want to have sure that we go to China & Japan in sizeable manner. We

five innovative markets and five already have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

innovative brand new vaccines in with China Chamber of Commerce for Pharmaceuticals &

the world. Bharat Biotech already Drug Products that is yielding very good dividends. Results

has five vaccines in the pipeline for will come in 2020 probably because there is a time which

next five years. is involved in the approval process. I am very hopeful that

- Dr Krishna Ella, CMD, Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad by 2020, Latin American & Russia strategy will pay-off.

- Dr Dinesh Dua, Chairman, Pharmexcil and CEO &

Director of Nectar Lifesciences, Chandigarh

INTENSIFY EFFORTS TO

EXPORT TO JAPAN, CHINA

Pharmaceutical Export Promotion FIND SOLUTIONS TO

Council of India (Pharmexcil) ENDEMIC HEALTH

besides whatever it does in terms PROBLEMS

of promoting exports through Between 2020 and 2025,

very innovative means has 2025 our major focus would be
on investing our resources
started spreading its reach to countries which were in providing innovative and
cost-effective solutions into enzymes,
2024 not being visited earlier probiotics and nutraceuticals verticals.
like CIS, Russia and Latin We will be launching various finished
America besides Africa
which has always

formulations to find solutions to endemic

health problems & life style disorders. We

shall be actively working into synbiotoic

segment. Awareness is a bliss and we want

23 that our consumers should be completely aware of the

science behind our products. We aim to invest in clinical

trials & studies, filing patents.

- Gaurav Kaushik, MD & CEO, Meteoric

Biopharmaceuticals, Ahmedabad

2022 IMPLEMENT AI IN
MANUFACTURING
We see year 2020 as a bright year.
We have inaugurated recently
SEZ’s new additional facilities
built as per EU/ US FDA norms.
We will add further capacities to
our existing vaccines. We also have a rich pipeline of new
products like Pneumo of which developing country’s
children are deprived because of very high price by
MNC’s all these years. We have a rich pipeline of products
for EU/ US markers. We are also implementing AI in
manufacturing and distribution. Our 5 year strategies
are to make our offerings of vaccines for developing
countries rich. We will also plan to enter developed
country market for which we are getting geared.
- Dr SD Ravetkar, Executive Director,

Serum Institute of India, Pune

32 VISION 2020-2025 BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

BIOSERVICES INVEST IN TALENT
DEVELOPMENT
SET UP OPERATIONS IN US, We look forward to 2020 and
ALLIANCE WITH CHINA believe it will be a year of growth.
We are very focused on our We would like to focus on scalable
ability to offer integrated services, growth by investing in talent
improve our technology standards, development and bringing our
drive innovation and create more global technology-enabled solutions and advances in
differentiated service offerings. clinical research to India.
To this end, we are broadening our delivery footprint by - Suneela Thatte, Head, RDS India, IQVIA, Mumbai
setting up operations in the US and strategic alliance
with China, making opportunistic investments in new EXPAND INTO NEW
and innovative technologies in the oncology/CNS and TECHNOLOGY AREAS
flow chemistry/catalysis domains and diversifying into We will see a significant growth
drug formulation development and polymers/specialty in our business led both by
chemicals research. domestic and export business. We
- Swapan Bhattacharya, MD, TCG Lifesciences, Kolkata are expanding into areas of new
technologies and newer platforms.
EXPAND PRE-CLINICAL - Ajay Bhardwaj, CEO, Anthem Biosciences, Bangalore
SERVICES TO EMERGING
MARKETS BRING IN INTERNATIONAL
We aim to improve speed, increase COLLABORATION
efficiencies and expand our My strategies for 2020 – 2025
pre-clinical services to different is to strengthen the company
emerging markets. We have by bringing in international
already made small steps in the area of med tech which collaboration through M & A and
we would expand and build our capacity and skill set. In reinvest on new business activities.
2019, we had 2 major academic collaborations and we - Divya C, CEO, Bioagile Therapeutics, Bangalore
see 2020 as a promising year as we would be focusing
on developing these IPs in the areas of neuroscience and STRATEGY BUILDING
anti infectives. We aim to increase drug development AROUND DATA
efficiency by a data driven approach. Our strategy for the next several
- Dr Chaitra Harsha, MD, Vipragen, Mysore years is built around data. We
are now the largest repository
MAKE INDIA LEAD IN GLOBAL globally for data pertaining to
DRUG DEVELOPMENT cancer patients of Indian origin.
With the positive changes in Operationally, majority of our next 100 hires will be AI
the regulatory landscape for scientists and data experts.
clinical trials that will help drug - Zoya Brar, MD & CEO, CORE Diagnostics, New Delhi
development in India, ISCR has
firmed up the following goals; ADOPT DIGITAL WAY
Continue confidence building measures and advocacy Aggressive growth underpinned
efforts for all stake holders; Increase awareness of clinical by customer delight, operational
research among patients; Work with stakeholders excellence and cash flow all of
to further the cause of clinical research; Increase which will be digitally enabled are
outreach to various stakeholders; Publish white papers/ what we see going forward. We
publications; and Continue clinical research awareness/ are seeing digitization in every
training programmes and India leading in global drug area of our business playing a major role.
development. - Arjun Ananth, CEO & Whole Time Director,

- Dr Chirag Trivedi, President, Medall Diagnostics, Chennai
Indian Society Clinical Research (ISCR), Mumbai

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com VISION 2020-2025 33

HEALTHCARE other verticals like diagnostics, etc.
- Dr Harish Pillai, CEO-India, Aster DM Healthcare,
BRING 3-4 ADDITIONAL Bangalore
CENTRES
2020 is an important year for ADVANCE RETINA
Cytecare Hospital Bengaluru CARE FACILITIES
both in terms of its expansion MaxiVision is creating advanced
plans as well as from a healthcare retina care facilities across
industry perspective. We have its network to make Fundus
begun our research activities and launched a Bio- (Retina) examinations as a part
repository programme, the Bone Marrow Transplant of regular check-up, making
programme and radioiodine treatment. We now would it comprehensive. Lot of vision check camps, and
like to expand our existing services in Breast Oncology, awareness talks are conducted in and around the
Head & Neck Oncology, GI oncology, Haemato-oncology, corporates, associations, and other congregations to
Paediatric oncology amongst others. We have just increase the awareness of vision care. MaxiVision is
launched the Centres of Excellence for Myeloma an active participant in all Public-Private Partnership
care with Dr Hari Menon at the helm and this would programs, and state/central government vision care
need to be an area of focus. The Centre for Advanced schemes. We also have adopted far rural villages to
Cancers and Immunotherapy headed by Dr Hari Menon make it avoidable blind free villages, in Warangal, and
and Dr Prasad Narayanan has also been launched to Karimnagar districts, and recently 16 villages, out of 44
provide comprehensive care for patients and access to villages it adopted for this programme.
advanced therapeutics. We are conducting feasibilities - Sudheer S, COO, MaxiVision Group of Eye Hospitals,
and evaluating opportunities in the country and we are
hoping that the next 5 years will allow us to bring 3-4 Hyderabad
additional centres in India. Our international footprint is
also expected to grow in Africa, Middle East and South 2025ADD 1700 BEDS TO
Asia. Cytecare would like to drive excellence in patient-
centric cancer care through research and also education. EXISTING
Dr Vikram Kekatpure leads our Cancer conference
platform CANCON that was established to connect the HOSPITALS
senior oncologists in the country and to define guidelines
for treatment for different cancers and improve the We have always
standards of cancer care. We plan to invest and expand
that even more going forward. been passionate
- Suresh Ramu, Co-Founder & CEO, Cytecare Hospitals,
about quaternary
Bangalore
healthcare and our
INVEST IN IT
INFRASTRUCTURE vision is to work in creating truly world 2024
Aster has put in place pan-India class institution. We would be adding
systems and policies with a large around 1700 beds by way of brownfield
focus on clinical and services
excellence, this will fetch us large expansion in our existing hospitals.
scale dividends in the adoption
of best practice. We plan to consolidate our existing We will continue our pursuit of
operations and increase the utilization of assets; Start
benchmarking metrices of clinical and service excellence providing world class healthcare 2023
within the Aster system and within peer groups within by innovation and process
India and overseas; Focus on people as key assets, in reengineering, technology
terms of investing in their development and long-
term career plans; Have continuous and sustainable adoption and training.
investments in IT infrastructure both, within the hospital
and outside the hospital ecosystem; and Expand into - Dr Mradul Kaushik,

Senior Director, 2022
Operations and
Planning, Max

Healthcare,

New Delhi

2021

2020

34 VISION 2020-2025 BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

BIOSUPPLIERS 2020

IMPROVE CUSTOMER SET UP JOINT PRODUCTION
EXPERIENCE FACILITIES WITH OVERSEAS
Promega plans to firmly establish PARTNERS
new growth pillars with our We have been on expansion
offering around molecular spree in the last 5 years
diagnostics, especially our DNA wherein, significant part of
analysis test used to detect high our investments was towards
microsatellite instability (MSI-H) in solid tumors will upgrading our research and development as well as
continue to advance clinical research for inherited risk production capabilities. We have also set up multiple
factors and immune oncology. The areas of forensics and manufacturing sites to cater to the increasing
cell based assays will also be important for us. In addition, demands, at domestic and global level. We have
our focus will remain on improving the customer now set up a gamma radiation sterilization facility to
experience as we develop our capabilities in terms of not only cater to our internal demand but also to the
eco-friendly packaging, website design and online supply demands that comes in from the pharma industry in
chain management. need of good quality pharma grade documentation
- Dr Rajnish Bharti, General Manager, Promega Biotech, for sterilization work. Today, the microbiology media
of HiMedia is being exported to over 150 countries
New Delhi and our footprints in the US and the EU Union, where
we have our own operations, is also growing rapidly.
TRAIN ~100K HEALTHCARE In the next 5 years, we foresee this to increase by
PROFESSIONALS PER YEAR many folds and are also looking forward to setting up
BD is continuing to invest in India joint production facilities with our overseas partners
& Bangladesh to help drive better for Microbiology, Animal Cell Culture and Molecular
access & outcomes for healthcare. Biology products. We are working on development of
We are increasing product lines chemically defined serum free media for biotherapy,
that will be manufactured in our for biosimilar, production of different biomolecules
Haryana facility, increasing the number of engineers in such as insulin, erythropoietin, GMCSF, GCSF and for
R&D in Bengaluru & Chandigarh centres, continuing to monoclonal Antibodies (mAbs) of different types. We
work with the government in its fight against TB, HIV. In will also be making serum free media for vaccines
addition, we will be targeting to train ~100K healthcare for both human as well as animal. A lot of specialized
professionals every year for next 5 years to help improve media would be available in the market from
their ability to deliver quality patient outcome. HiMedia for stem cell expansion and differentiation
- Pavan Mocherla, MD, BD India/South Asia, Gurgaon as well as for primary cell culturing. HiMedia is also
working in a big way on organ regeneration and
EXPAND PRODUCT LINES organ transplantation. So, transplantation media
BEYOND GENOMICS that are needed to preserve organs and transport
2020 for us seems to well poised them as well as media in which stem cells and IPSCs
with some large Genomics could be cultured to develop them into steroids and
initiatives being announced organoids which can later be taken up for organ re-
by the Government of India generation studies.
mainly Genome India, Indigen, - Dr Vishal G. Warke, Director, Cell culture & Immunology,
Earth Biogenome, Microbiome projects. In addition we
are seeing a massive spurt in adoption of Genomics HiMedia Laboratories, Mumbai
in the applied fields like clinical and agriculture. Our
major strategies for next 5 years are broadly based
on expanding applications for current products; new
markets for current products; product lines beyond
genomics; geographical coverage beyond India; and
making our own products under our brand.
- Praveen Gupta, MD, Premas Life Sciences, New Delhi

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com VISION 2020-2025 35

2025 trust and confidence in the Indian manufacturers as the
one online platform where they can reach to thousands
of lab users across the globe. Our main focus shall be on
extensive digital marketing and offline marketing through
participations in trade fairs, advertising and PR activities.

- Dr S. Jhaveri, CEO & Founder, Biomall, Mumbai

UP SKILL LOCAL LIFE SCIENCE IDENTIFY UNMET NEEDS OF
CAPABILITIES DOMESTIC COMPANIES ON
At Merck, we have the widest DEVICES FRONT
product portfolio, regulatory 2020 promises to be an exciting
and technical capabilities in year for us in West India. We
upstream and downstream will continue to focus on our
manufacturing that can support strengths in providing high-quality
customers throughout the phases of biologics research injectable drug packaging and delivery system and
and production to process optimization. We are also help our customers to bring their products to market
been collaborating with local authorities and companies faster. We are seeing strong customer uptake of our
by providing our expertise and training to up skill the high-value products (HVPs), especially in the Biologics
capabilities of the local life science community. We are market unit. Our broad strategy is to focus on high-value
excited about the upcoming opportunities and we are components and devices. NovaPure components are
ready to support our customers in 2020 and beyond. our focus for our customers in exporting business. It is
- Benoit Opsomer, VP & Head, Bio Process, Life Science manufactured under the principle of Quality-by-Design
and offers exceptional cleanliness and the tightest limits
business, APAC, Merck, Singapore on particulates. Our new advanced elastomer 4040(40)
formulation, which was announced in CPHI Germany,
INVEST IN LATEST will also be another mainstay for us in India. We will work
TECHNOLOGIES very closely with our customers to identify the unmet
Bry-Air is a the leader in the need of domestic Indian companies on the devices front.
dehumidification market in India West’s award-winning, commercially available SelfDose
with as much as 8 out of every injector platform provides a ready to go, easy to use,
10 pharma companies using our non-intimidating self-injection solution without the need
dehumidifiers for their humidity to change existing 1mL long glass syringe - allowing the
control needs. Investment in latest dehumidification biosimilar product to get to market quickly. We will look
technologies is a necessity for the pharmaceutical at expansion opportunities if the market demands.
companies in the country. Our new super BrySmart (BBS) - Subramaniam Alagu, MD, West India, Hyderabad
Series is built with that in mind.
- Ashok Kumar Prusty, Executive Vice President, Bry-Air, OPEN NEW TANK IN MID-2020
We have set up a new glass
Gurgaon melting tank in Gujarat with all
the latest technology, including
ASSOCIATE WITH MORE the production line which itself
INDIAN SUPPLIERS is following the new industrial
In 2020, we look forward to standard 4.0. We have brought the
associate with more Indian entire latest tech to India and by opening and starting
suppliers and promote their this facility we can say it is the most modernized glass
products across the globe and factory in our Schott group. This tank is only the first step,
hope to raise funding for our as there is a new tank which will be ready by mid-2020
expansion plans. In next 5 years, we aim to be known and we are planning to meet the deadline with the
by every scientist globally as the one stop shop to buy new tank. We have completed this one in record time
laboratory supplies from India. Also, our aim is to develop and with this expansion, I think we will be ready for the
domestic as well as the international market.
- Georg Sparschuh, MD, Schott Glass India, Vadodara

36 SPEAKING WITH BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

“Still there is no vaccine
available for use against Shigella”

« We look forward to testing safety and immunogenicity
of our vaccine and to establish clinical proof-of-concept
Dr Davinder Gill, in endemic setting.
CEO, Hilleman
Laboratories, What will be the impact of this partnership?
New Delhi Impact on public health: Since there is no licensed
vaccine available against Shigella, it’ll help in bringing
In order to assess a new vaccine against Shigella, down the preventable deaths and sickness due to
Hilleman Laboratories which is a joint venture Shigellosis. Impact on vaccine market: Presently there
between MSD and Wellcome Trust recently has is not licensed vaccine available for Shigella, and
collaborated with European Vaccine Initiative (EVI), so availability of ShigOraVax can be game changer
a non-profit organisation supporting the development opening a new segment for oral vaccine against a
of effective, accessible, and affordable vaccines for major diarrheal disease. It will attract manufacturers
global health. Dr Davinder Gill, CEO, Hilleman from both developed and developing countries.
Laboratories in an interaction with BioSpectrum talks
about this collaboration and more. Edited excerpts; What sort of investments is involved in this
partnership?
Can you throw some light on this partnership? A multidisciplinary, international consortium
Shigella is reported as the second most common cause coordinated by the EVI) has received a grant of €8.6
of diarrhoeal deaths in children under 5 years of age, million from the European and Developing Countries
after rotavirus. Still there is no vaccine available for Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) for developing
use against Shigella. Additionally, there is paucity of a safe, efficacious and affordable Shigella vaccine.
accurate data on the actual burden of disease in the Together, the partners intend to develop the new
regions most affected. Hilleman Labs is developing Shigella vaccine candidate up to mid clinical stage.
a low-cost, easy-to-administer Shigella vaccine in Specific objectives of the project include the preparation
collaboration with National Institute of Cholera and and conduct of a phase I a/b clinical trial in European
Enteric Disease (NICED) Kolkata and Indian Council and African adults, followed by an age deescalating
of Medical Research (ICMR) Institute, New Delhi, phase II in Burkina Faso, and a multi-centre phase II b
India. Considering the huge disease burden carried clinical trial in Burkina Faso and Zambia.
by Shigella, and given that there is no licensed vaccine
currently available to address the disease, a consortium Can you throw some light on the burden and the
comprising of European Vaccine Initiative (Germany); therapeutic challenges of shigellosis in India?
MSD-Wellcome Trust - Hilleman Laboratories (India); Shigellosis is an acute enteric infection caused by
Leiden University Medical Centre (Netherlands); consumption of food and water contaminated with
Gothenburg University (Sweden); Groupe de Recherche bacteria from the genus Shigella. It is one of the leading
Action en Santé GRAS (Burkina Faso); and Centre for causes of diarrhoea resulting in 165 million cases each
Infectious Disease Research in Zambia was formed. year, and more than 212,000 deaths in all age groups.
This multidisciplinary, international consortium has It is reported as the second most common cause of
assembled to develop a safe, efficacious and affordable diarrhoeal deaths in children under five years of age,
Shigella vaccine-ShigOraVax. ShigOraVax will be the after rotavirus. The treatment of Shigella with antibiotics
first-ever Indian Shigella vaccine developed to benefit is challenge because of development of antimicrobial
people living in low and middle-income settings. resistance in the circulating shigella strains. So vaccines
Successful completion of this project will strengthen are excellent options for controlling the burden of
the vaccine pipeline against a major diarrhoeal disease. Shigella. Shigella vaccine cannot become available
unless taken up by a vaccine manufacturer; hence
vaccine industry has a critical role to play in managing
the public health challenge posed by Shigellosis.

Kalyani Sharma
[email protected]

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com SPEAKING WITH 37

“Healthcare industry is
undergoing paradigm shift,
evolving from human-driven
to technology-enabled sector”

« Imaging with Max Healthcare Hospital under
the guidance of Dr Bharat Aggarwal, Director –
Haruto Iwata, Radiology Services, Max Super Speciality Hospital,
Managing Director, Saket and Dr Harit Chaturvedi, Chairman, Max
Fujifilm India, Institute of Cancer Care.
New Delhi
Under this Max Fujifilm fellowship doctors would
In order to train doctors in advance diagnostics be trained in Breast mammography, Breast MR, and
and spread awareness about early detection of Breast ultrasound techniques for six months. Each
breast cancer, Fujifilm India recently joined year, the programme will train two select radiologists
hands with Max Healthcare. Haruto Iwata, Managing in the early detection of Breast cancer.
Director, Fujifilm India in an interaction with
BioSpectrum India talks about this collaboration Can you elaborate on the company’s future
and other challenges faced by the diagnostic market expansion & collaboration plans on this
today. Edited excerpts; platform?
With over 80 years of experience, Fujifilm has been
Can you throw some light on your recent a pioneer in imaging technology and has constantly
collaboration with Max Healthcare? What is the displayed an innovative line-up of products and
major objective behind this partnership? solutions. We at Fujifilm believe in collaborative
Breast cancer is still the most common cancer among innovation in order to provide solutions for the issues
women globally and in India as well. According to the that affect society.
Health Ministry of India breast cancer ranks as the
number one cancer among Indian females with a rate This year, we announced partnerships with
as high as 25.8 per 100,000 women and mortality of Indian Academy of CT- Guided Intervention (IACTI)
12.7 per 100,000 women. Majority of breast cancer and Breast Imaging Society of India (BISI) wherein
cases in India are detected in young, premenopausal we organized an awareness program on ‘Breast
women. It is prevalent in females who are in their & Gynaecology Imaging; we installed Fujifilm’s
early 30s owing to sedentary lifestyles, genetics, SYNAPSE technology at Peerless Hospital, Kolkata;
dietary changes and family history of cancer. organized an awareness program on ‘TOGETHER
END TB’ with Yashoda Super Speciality Hospital,
Witnessing the scarcity of radiologists and limited Kaushambi, Ghaziabad to help eradicate tuberculosis
experts in breast cancer diagnostics across India, in India; we also offered free chest X-Rays at
Fujifilm India and Max Super Speciality Hospital, Chhatrapati Shivaji Subharti Hospital, Meerut, Uttar
Saket have come together with an aim to train doctors Pradesh and with Max Healthcare we associated
in Advance Diagnostics and spread awareness about for providing advanced screening of stage “Zero”
early detection of breast cancer. breast cancers & are currently running a fellowship-
training programme for doctors and radiologists at
As part of the association, Fujifilm will be Max hospital on usage of ‘Fujifilm 50 Micron Digital
sponsoring an Advanced Fellowship in Breast Mammography Machine.

Living up to our motto of Value from Innovation,
we are committed to providing products and services
that not only enhance image quality and workflow
but also keep the patients well-being in mind by
introducing the latest innovative technologies and

38 SPEAKING WITH BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

solutions. We have developed Computed Radiology increase our share in the digital radiography segment
and Digital Radiology products which facilitate from the present 30 per cent and have a target of
digitization of X-ray, coupled with PACS and RIS touching the 40 per cent mark this year. Our aim is to
to provide faster access to images to consultants generate more than double revenues by 2020, citing
sitting in metro cities or big hospitals. With more the huge demand for our digital medical devices.
than 30,000 thousand systems installed in India,
Fujifilm’s focus is on AI and IT. What are the major challenges that the Indian
diagnostic market is facing?
Through public private partnerships in India, The overall healthcare industry is undergoing a
Fujifilm has installed 100-200 systems across paradigm shift, evolving from a human-driven
states, in collaboration with the government. We to a technology-enabled sector. With this digital
have acquired 94 per cent institutional sales in the transformation, it is bringing a change in the way
public health sector and are looking at expansion doctors and patients are interacting.
in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and
Odisha. We’re bringing many solutions, which will The major challenge faced by the industry is the
ensure that challenges in the public health sector scarcity of radiologists and limited experts. While
and population health management are addressed there is enough capital available for the right idea,
efficiently. Hence, it requires a lot of effort in terms of limited experts in the field is the prime constraint.
research to get there.
We have taken this challenge by introducing
What are your investment plans in the coming technological advancements that help doctors to
years for the Indian market? manage workflow systems and allow them to treat
During FY2018-19, we recorded a turnover of Rs 1150 patients efficiently.
crore out of which Medical Systems was the major
contributor followed by Photo Imaging, Electronic With the increasing incidence of breast cancer
Imaging, Graphic Arts, Recording Media and diseases in female population, it is imperative for
Industrial Products respectively. In 1983, Fujifilm healthcare providers to step up and provide women
started the first digital radiograph and since then the best and precise early detection screening
it has grown by leaps and bounds when it comes to facilities that can help save lives. To fight this battle
image processing, virtual grid technologies and other against cancer, it is important to spread awareness
technologies that have come to the fore with different and encourage people to undergo regular health
dynamic ranges. check-ups. Understanding the importance of
timely screening for prevention is critical towards
We have recently won the ‘Indian Digital early diagnosis and treatment, Staying true to
Radiography Company of the Year’ award at the Frost create awareness for the cause, Fujifilm has been
& Sullivan 2019 India Best Practices ceremony. This making concerted efforts to contribute to the early
award certainly reaffirms our vision and strengthens detection and treatment of breast cancer through
our position in the digital radiology space. It their associating with the Pink Ribbon Campaign.
resonates with our commitment to provide best-in- The company’s revolutionary techniques and wealth
class healthcare technologies and diagnostic needs. of experience have enabled them to come up with
high precision and high-resolution mammography
With the domestic digital radiography industry devices. Modern day digital mammography machines
touching Rs 162 crore annually, Fujifilm currently with tomosynthesis technology that is available in
shares 30 per cent of the total. We are trying to Fujifilm’s 50 Micron digital Mammography – Amulet
Innovality is a key device, which helps in detecting
the early symptoms of cancer.

Fujifilm’s holistic and comprehensive approach
in improving women healthcare with digital
mammography has driven more than 3,500 happy
users across the world, amongst them 40 installations
are present in India. The company has collaborated
with different institutes all over India for the
installation of its 50 Micron 3D Mammography
machine - a highly advanced breast cancer diagnostic
machine that has made early detection of breast
cancer a reality for women.

Kalyani Sharma
[email protected]

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com PERSONALISED HEALTHCARE 39

Spotlight on Comprehensive
Genomic Profiling

Over 1.2 million mutations in 350 genes in Foundation Medicine, as well as academicians
a human body causing cancer make every from universities made presentations on various
cancer case a unique one. It needs to be aspects of genomic testing and its importance in
treated that way. The genomic profile of each understanding cancer and treating it.
cancer patient is unique and may hold the key
to understanding the disease more in depth Charlotte Colthorpe, Group Global Scientific
and treating it. Director, Medical Affairs Team Lead, Skin and
Rare Cancers, Roche, said, “Transition to precision
From the understanding of 250 types of medicine leads to paradigm shift in cancer care.”
cancers by the conventional diagnostic But the main requirement of precision medicine is
methods the medical field is moving fast a massive data of patients. Researchers need large
forward to identification of mutated cell. “The database so that even for the rarest type of cancer
medical field has moved from histological diagnosis they have large sample size to understand the
in 2000 to molecular diagnosis in 2018,” said Dr specific cancer.
Christian Rommel, Global Head, Oncology Pharma
Research, Roche. “Foundation medicine has been building such
a database for the past nine years and has now one
The new generation technology now knows the of the largest database containing genomic profiles
uniqueness of each cancer case by understanding of over 300,000 cancer patients,” said Dr Prasanth
what mutations in which of the 350 genes that Reddy, VP, Medical Affairs, Foundation Medicine.
contribute to cancer development cause it. Dr The Foundation Medicine is providing services
Rommel informed that scientists are targeting to like FoundationOne® CDx which is first FDA
find more genes that may contribute to cancer. approved broad companion diagnostic designed
to provide physicians with clinically actionable
“Advances in cancer biology are driving future information based on the individual genomic
and cancer care is becoming personalised,” profile of each patient’s cancer. Its FoundationOne
said Josh Jordon, Lifecycle Leader, Foundation Heme is a comprehensive genomic profiling test
Medicine, Roche. Advances in genomic testing for hematologic malignancies and sarcomas and
are driving the personalisation of cancer care and FoundationOne Liquid is next-generation liquid
helping physicians understand patients’ unique biopsy test for solid tumors utilizing circulating
cancer types. tumor DNA (ctDNA). All these services are
available in India too.
This uniqueness of each cancer case leads
to precision and personalised medicine which is Josh Lauer, Global Head, Personalised
“changing the treatment paradigm and offering Healthcare Market Development, Roche, said that
a big promise to cancer patients,” said Oliver for driving value from data and analytics what was
Bleck, GM, Roche Pharma, Switzerland. He was needed was meaningful data at scale and advanced
addressing the media from different countries analytics. With high resolution view of each patient
at a media event on “The future of personalised “we have increasing level of information and the
healthcare: Advances in precision medicine and challenge was that how we use it perfectly,” he
genomics” held at the Roche Innovation Centre in added.
Zurich.
Benjamin Szilagyi, Business Lead, Enhanced
The two-day event by Roche and its partner Data & Insights Sharing, Roche, said that
Foundation Medicine, a molecular insight company meaningful medical data gives exquisite insights
from the US, introduced to the international in the disease in the last 30 years. When asked
media the new emerging world of Comprehensive about the requirement of facilities like artificial
Genomic Profiling (CGP) leading to precision intelligence (AI) for analysis of such a huge data,
medicine and targeted & personalised healthcare. he said, “before analysis even data management
Several executives and researchers of Roche and is a problem that will have to be looked into. Even
in some developed countries the data is stored on
paper, which needs to be changed.”

40 PERSONALISED HEALTHCARE BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

“The data of Swiss patients is kept in the lab of molecularly-guided therapy versus platinum-
here only and the patients have the choice to give containing chemotherapy in patients with newly
data for research or not”, clarified Prof Holger diagnosed, previously untreated CUP. “It is planned
Moch, Medical Director, Department of Pathology at 128 sites in 32 countries over 790 patients”, he
and Molecular Pathology, University Hospital said adding 193 patients have been enrolled till
Zurich (USZ). He explained how the role of now. Every patient in the CUPISCO study will be
pathologist has changed in molecular pathology. “It discussed in molecular tumor board, said Prof
is two-fold and evolving,” he said. Moch.

He explained physicians are now able to Prof David Thomas, Head, Cancer Division,
personalise treatment to the unique molecular Garvan Institute, gave details of WINTHER,
profile of the patient and thus precision medicine I-PREDICT, TARGET clinical trials launched to
was driving personalised healthcare. He informed study various aspects of CGP. He predicted that
that Roche, Foundation Medicine and the USZ molecular guided therapy will be routine in clinical
have joined forces in an academic-industry practice.
collaboration to improve personalised cancer
therapy using comprehensive tumor profiling and Later in a panel discussion he said, “We
to enhance personalised and targeted therapy are measurably improving patient survival.”
options. He pointed out that molecular testing can be
wrong some time and we are re-analysing the
USZ runs the lab to do genome profiling data. Kramar said that over 80 molecular track
and generate reports of the cancer patients in treatments were approved. It was extremely
Switzerland on the basis of the Foundation difficult to do randomised studies, he added.
Medicine system. “When a patient is diagnosed
with cancer, his genome profiling is done here in Bogi Eliasen, Special Advisor on Future of
the lab”, said Dr Martin Zoche, Director, Molecular Health, Copenhagen Institute of future studies,
Tumor Profiling, USZ while showing the media gave details of Faroe genome project, a holistic
persons functioning of the lab. The profiling costs $ genomic health approach in Faroe in Denmark. He
4000 in the US and the process takes 14 to 20 days. said, “Genomics is going to be the most important
baseline to be worked with.” Prof Roger Moos,
Dr Abdullah Kahraman, Head, Clinical President, Swiss Group for Clinical Research, said
Bioinformatics in Molecular Tumor Profiling, USZ, that 32 per cent of cancer patients in Switzerland
explained about the report generation. Besides the were treated outside of treatment guidelines
gene alternations, the report also carries potential leading to lack of data collection. He gave details
therapy options and relevant clinical trials. “It is a of the Swiss Group of Clinical Cancer Research
simplified clear report,” said Dr Merlene Thomas, (SKSS).
Global Medical Lead for Integrated Molecular
Medicine, Roche. The event also included narrations of
experiences by the cancer survivors. Prostate
The report is then matched with the existing cancer survivor Bryce Olson, Global Strategist,
database to find out matching profiles of earlier Health and Life sciences Group, Intel Corporation;
patients and then put before the Molecular Tumor breast cancer survivor journalist Susan McClure,
Board. The board facilitates its interpretation, Founder and CEO, Genome Creative; and sister of a
assign precise treatment and provide education, cancer victim Ruth Knott, Co-founder and Head of
she said. “How to integrate ever-increasing amount Governance, the SJK Foundation, presented their
of information into clinical decision is a challenge”, experiences of passing through cancer and cancer
she added. care respectively.

Prof Alwin Kramer, Head, Clinical Cooperation “The one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare
Unit, University of Heidelberg, who discussed no longer cuts it, and it is time for people to
the cancer of unknown primary (CUP), said that understand that in order to get targeted treatments
CUP incidences have decreased, probably due tailored uniquely to them, they have to do some
to improved diagnostics, but mortality has not form of genomic testing,” said McClure, who has
improved. He added that CGP has the potential to devoted her life to better educating the public about
transform how we care for even CUP patients as genomics.
it opens up the possibility to bring personalised
therapies to patients with CUP. He described the Milind Kokje
details of CUPISCO, a Roche-initiated, multi- [email protected]
cohort trial in CUP patients based on genomic (Milind Kokje was invited to participate in the
profiling for comparing the efficacy and safety Media Event at Zurich and his trip was

sponsored by Roche)

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com ACADEMIC NEWS 41

IMTECH partners with IIT-B CCRAS signs
MoU with
CSIR-Institute of Microbial quality research acumen JNU and ILBS
Technology (IMTECH), between the researchers
Chandigarh has signed and faculty of both the Central Council for Research in
a Memorandum of institutes. The objective of Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) under
Understanding (MoU) with this collaboration is to carry Ministry of AYUSH, Government of
Indian Institute of Technology out state of the art research in India has entered a Memorandum
(IIT) Bombay to promote areas of healthcare especially of Understanding (MoU) with
collaborative research. The in projects and mission JawaharLal Nehru University
MoU will facilitate exchange where both the institutes can (JNU) and Institute of Liver
of ideas, development of new significantly complement each and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) for
knowledge and enhance high other. cooperation in the field of Research
& Development and Training in
Ayurveda & Traditional Medicine.
This Research Collaboration
would be able to generate tangible
evidences on fundamental
principles of Ayurveda through
multiomics studies and also safety,
efficacy of Ayurveda Interventions
for emerging health challenges
such as non-alcoholic fatty liver
disease (NAFLD).

42 TRENDING BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Need to capitalize on
regenerative medicine

« to promote research and rapid transition of the
technology from bench to bedside. However, there
Dr Pradeep Mahajan, persist challenges related to regulations and ethics
CMD, StemRx concerning clinical application of such therapies,
Bioscience Solutions, for which a strict governing framework is needed to
Mumbai capitalize on the growing market of Regenerative
Medicine.
With changing times, our approach towards
situations has also changed. As a country, Since 2001, the Department of Biotechnology
India is rapidly developing and has been (DBT) has invested in basic stem cell research and
projected as the world’s fastest growing economy. currently over 40 institutions, hospitals and industries
India is also seeing a change in the type of age- in India are actively involved in this research. The
specific, chronic, debilitating diseases. Thus, the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative
manner in which we diagnose and treat such diseases Medicine (inStem) was opened in the year 2009,
is also seeing a paradigm shift. From empirical use an initiative of the DBT, which is an independent
of drugs to target-specific treatments, we are now research institute in this field. Also, as per the
advancing towards molecular dysfunction-based National Guidelines for Stem Cell Research in 2017,
therapies, and one such scientific development is at present, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation
regenerative medicine or stem cell therapy. (HSCT) is approved and is effective for treatment of
hematological disorders such as leukemia, sickle cell
To share the latest, autologous cellular therapy anemia etc. There is further provision for cell-based
is the beginning of a new era in the world of therapy to be conducted in the form of clinical trials
regenerative medicine. An interesting avenue after obtaining necessary regulatory approvals for
of research on stem cells is pertaining to cancer other indications. Public-private partnership may
immunotherapy wherein mesenchymal stem cells possibly provide the much required thrust for rapid
(MSCs) may behave as regulated delivery vehicles. transition from research to clinical application. This
Current research in regenerative medicine and cell will also aid in wide dissemination of services to the
based therapy also includes development of bioactive masses at affordable costs.
scaffolds that are capable of supporting activation
and differentiation of host stem cells at the required But the regulatory guidelines differ in each
site. country and so does the outcome of this science. For
example, Japan is spearheading a campaign that
This science is now being recognized worldwide, has formed the starting point of a radical regulatory
and India is promoting research and development reform for stem cell therapy- the Regenerative
in the field of Regenerative Medicine and Cell- Medicine Promotion Act [RMPA]. The law allowed
based therapy. Several government and private for conditional, limited-term market approval of
institutions and hospitals have stepped into the field stem cell products after early-phase clinical trials.
of regenerative medicine research and cell-based Conditional approval may be granted with positive
therapies. AIIMS, Apollo, Fortis group of hospitals, clinical data from as few as ten patients that predict
Narayana Nethralaya/Hrudayalay, NIMHANS the safety and efficacy of the tested cell products.
etc. are actively involved in research in the field.
Moreover, major pharmaceutical companies While one may say that Asian countries are more
have also forayed into this field and are investing flexible in their policies, considering approvals on
case-to-case/condition-to-condition basis, it does
not mean that the regulations are relaxed. Globally,
each regulatory body defines use of the technology
based on demands of the nation. The ultimate hope
is that through such research, medical professionals
will soon have an advanced therapeutic modality
for treatment of various diseases, in a standardized
manner.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com R&D NEWS 43

CEERI inStem, Unilever
discover way to combat AMR
designs dust
A team of scientists from the Institute for Stem Cell Science and
suction tool Regenerative Medicine (inStem), and the Unilever R&D department,
Bengaluru, have discovered a way to stimulate skin cells to secrete
Silicosis is a major naturally occurring antibiotics called Antimicrobial Peptides or AMPs.
occupational health Together, the team probed the cellular mechanisms that regulate the
problem among people release of AMP, which are natural antibiotics produced by skin cells to
engaged in stone work. fight off bacteria. AMPs target and kill bacteria in such variable ways that
The lung disease occurs few bacteria ever develop resistance to them, thus making AMPs uniquely
due to exposure to stone suited to treating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. The scientists’
dust like silica among work led to the discovery of a new signalling pathway in skin cells that
workers who do not use controls the long-term release of AMPs from these cells. By tweaking this
any protective gear. Silica pathway, researchers can induce AMP release from skin cells without any
is a tiny crystal found in exposure to bacteria. This has tremendous potential in preventing and
sand, rock and mineral ores treating infections for post-surgery wounds, and for diabetic patients and
like quartz. Researchers those with weakened immune systems.
from Council of Scientific
and Industrial Research- IIT-H develops novel ECG device
Central Electronics
Engineering Research Indian Institute of Technology- at the patient end. This work was
Institute (CSIR-CEERI), Hyderabad (IIT- H) researchers partly supported by Department
Pilani have developed a have developed a low-power of Science and Technology (DST),
stone dust precipitator device that can monitor Government of India under the
system that can help stone electrocardiogram (ECG) and alert Internet of Things (IoT) Research
workers breathe easy. The patients and doctors in real-time of Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical
researchers have developed about the risk of cardiovascular Systems (ICPS) Programme, with
two variants of dust diseases (CVD). In addition, they the Project entitled IoT Based
precipitator system - one for have also worked on developing Holistic Prevention and Prediction
single artisan and another different classification techniques of CVD (i-PREACT).
that can be used by four and integrating them to make a
persons simultaneously. generic algorithm. A novel System-
The precipitator for single On-Chip (SoC) architecture is
artisan collects tiny dust developed in a low complex way by
particles with its high resource sharing concept for the
suction power. This suction CVD automation. Thus the whole
is about 10 times more system can cover various ECG
than that of the inhaling abnormalities and finally come up
power of human beings, with the prototype board which
and it separates all the dust looks similar to as a smartphone
particles from the air and
finally dissolve it in water.
The sediment of this stone
dust is drained through
drain pot from time to
time. The stone dust can
then be reused. The system
for four workers has some
modifications as it has four
suction branches around
the system chamber. Each
branch has individual
control unit.

44 R&D NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

IIT-D, MAIDS create novel dental implant technology

A group of scientists from Indian Institute of during the insertion of threaded titanium implant.
Technology (IIT Delhi) and Maulana Azad Institute The biological efficacy and safety of the implant
of Dental Sciences (MAIDS) has developed a new was tested in animals and results were verified with
technology for dental implants which they say micro CT analysis and Histomorphometry at Sree
would be user-friendly and affordable solution
for treatment of missing tooth. These implants Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical
can work for all kind of conditions like single or Sciences & Technology (SCTIMST),
multiple missing teeth and even for providing Thiruvanthapuram and at Shriram
full denture. The researchers studied a range Institute for Industrial Research, Delhi.
of anthropometry in India An initial clinical test
based on which of the implant has
they developed the been done at MAIDS
implants. The design in single tooth implant
was based on the cases. The implant
premise of minimum has been tested in 150
stress generation patients with 92 per
cent success rate.

CSIO invents smart IISc brings portable
microscopy solution TB detection device

Researchers at Chandigarh-based Central Scientific A team of researchers from the Indian Institute
Instruments Organization (CSIO) of the Council of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, has developed a
of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have compact, stand-alone and portable device for
developed a smart microscopic solution. It can tuberculosis (TB) detection that promises to
acquire microscopic images or use stored microscopic overcome the limitation by drastically cutting
images of blood sample under study for the down the costs. The new device, which is based
on the concept of nucleic acid amplification,
quantification works on a method called LAMP detection or
of Red Blood Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification of
Cells (RBC) the DNA of the TB bacteria present in infected
and White samples. The screening uses a fluorescence
Blood Cells reporter material that latches on to the
(WBC). This amplified bacterial DNA. It has been named
microscopy FLIPP-NAAT, short for Fluorescent Isothermal
technique is Paper-and-Plastic NAAT. It has a ‘blister-
based on the pack’ type assembly which can be stacked,
deep learning transported and stored conveniently, especially
algorithm. in TB surveillance vehicles. The readings are
It uses the mathematical formulation which can be taken by using a low-cost UV torch to detect
used as optimised model for optimal outputs. It uses fluorescence response, and is coupled to a
software that calculates red and white blood cells mobile camera to capture the images.
using microscopic images of blood samples. The
existing methods are visual, manual methods but
this technique will use automated visual method.
In this, the microscope will have a camera mounted
on it and from that camera images will be acquired.
These images are then read in computers where the
backend algorithm can produce tell the results. In this
approach, detection and quantification for RBC and
subtypes of WBC has shown 93 per cent accuracy.
The software can be mounted on a digital microscope
developed by CSIO.

complexity simplified.

46 PEOPLE NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

ICMR confers Lifetime
Achievement award to
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

Biocon Chairperson & as a thought leader for
Managing Director Kiran
Mazumdar-Shaw has been building a globally -renowned
conferred with the Lifetime
Achievement Award for biopharmaceuticals company
Outstanding Achievement
in Healthcare by the Indian that is committed to
Council of Medical Research
(ICMR) for her remarkable innovation and is providing
contribution to the field
of healthcare and to the high-quality, affordable
society at large. ICMR, the
apex body in India for the medicines to patients
formulation, coordination
and promotion of biomedical across the world. She was
research, recognised Kiran
also recognised for her

philanthropic efforts and

providing better healthcare to

people in India and globally

through innovative, cost-

effective life-saving therapies

and increasing access to

healthcare at the grassroots.

Panacea Biotec Omega Healthcare ropes
in Sumit Sachdeva as CGO
announces key
Bengaluru based Omega Healthcare Management
managerial Services, a leading provider of Revenue Cycle
Management process and Analytics Solutions for the
appointments healthcare sector, has announced the appointment of

Panacea Biotec has announced key Sumit Sachdeva as Chief Growth Officer
managerial appointments in its top-level (CGO). Sachdeva will be responsible
leadership. Susheel Umesh has been for accelerating growth in the Payer
appointed as Chief Executive - Domestic and Pharma segments while
Formulations; Dr Rajeeva Kumar also driving adoption of several
Mangalum as Chief Operating Officer for Omega Healthcare technologies
the Pharmaceutical Operations; and Dinesh to deliver value to its clients.
Singla as Senior Vice President- Pharma Sachdeva brings over 20 years
Research & Pharma Regulatory Affairs. of experience in the healthcare
Umesh brings in 27 years of experience, services industry having held
deep understanding of Pharmaceutical global positions strategizing and
Industry and has managed P&Ls at Sanofi driving growth across the Payer,
and Abbott. He has led multiple roles Provider and Life Sciences
spanning from managing global brands to segments. He has
running a large commercial operation to worked in some
create value and establish differentiation of the leading
in the branded generic space. On the other companies in
hand, Dr Mangalum brings in 35 years of the industry
Pharmaceutical Manufacturing experience including WNS,
out of which he has spent 25 years in Cognizant,
Panacea Biotec. Singla brings in 24 years Hexaware/
of Pharmaceutical Research experience out Caliber Point
of which he has spent 12 years in Panacea and Xerox.
Biotec.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com PEOPLE NEWS 47

Syngene Siddharth Mittal takes
over as CEO, JMD of Biocon
appoints Sibaji
Biocon has announced that Siddharth Mittal has
Biswas as CFO taken over as Chief Executive Officer & Joint
Managing Director of the Company from
Syngene International, December 1, 2019. Mittal has been serving as
a leading global contract Biocon’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) since
research organisation, has August 2014. Mittal takes over from Dr Arun
announced the appointment Chandavarkar who retired as Chief Executive
of Sibaji Biswas as Chief Officer & Joint Managing Director of Biocon
Financial Officer and member on November 30, 2019, after 29 years of
of the Executive Committee outstanding contribution to the evolution and
with effect from December 18, success of Biocon. Mittal has been a core member
2019. He is succeeding M.B. of the leadership team at Biocon since May 2013
Chinappa, current CFO, who and has played an instrumental role in
will stay within the Biocon the biosimilars success story so
Group of Companies and join far including restructuring of
Biocon Biologics India in a the biosimilars business into
new role. Biswas brings more Biocon Biologics with an
than 20 years of extensive objective to unlock value
experience in finance and for Biocon’s shareholders.
related functions. His prior
experience includes 11 years Dr Prathap C. Reddy receives
at Vodafone as well as roles in recognition from IMTJ, Berlin
Fascel Telecommunications,
Jhagadia Copper and the ABP Dr Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman, and Founder, Apollo Hospitals
Group. In his most recent role, Group has been honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at
he was CFO and Board Member the recently concluded IMTJ Medical Travels Awards 2019 held
for Vodafone Romania. With in Berlin, Germany. The award was conferred on Dr Reddy for
a B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur,
Biswas is a Chartered Financial his significant contribution to the growth and
Analyst from ICFAI and holds development of Medical Value Travel. Dr
an MBA (Finance) from the Reddy, the visionary Founder-Chairman of
University of Calcutta. He has Apollo Hospitals is widely acknowledged
also completed Management as the architect of modern Indian
Development Programmes healthcare. He is best described as a
at the Indian Institute of compassionate humanitarian, who
Management (Ahmedabad) dedicated his life to bringing world-
and London Business School. class healthcare within the economic
and geographic reach of millions. The
institution that he envisioned and built
Apollo Hospitals, steered a revolution and
marked the birth of the private
healthcare industry in India.
Dr Reddy was conferred the
‘Padma Vibhushan’ the
second highest civilian
award by the Government of
India, an acknowledgement
of his untiring pursuit of
excellence in healthcare
in 1991.

48 SUPPLIERS NEWS BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

Waters West, SCHOTT announce
Corporation new partnership
reveals 2025
sustainability West Pharmaceutical Services, use combinations of West and
goals Inc., a global leader in innovative SCHOTT products, to be available
solutions for injectable drug on a small-quantity basis.
Waters Corporation administration, and the Forthcoming combinations of
has announced its international technology group the products within the Ready
2025 sustainability SCHOTT, a leading primary Pack and SCHOTT iQ platforms
goals and packaging solutions provider, will extend to customizable
simultaneously have announced a partnership configurations in order to
announced a to combine the SCHOTT iQ meet various requirements,
commitment platform with West’s Ready Pack whether changing batch sizes
to report its system. The collaboration will or accommodating different
sustainability initially launch by combining container needs, especially for
progress annually. West components and SCHOTT’s biologic drugs. In the near future,
These goals were adaptiQ high-quality RTU glass West and SCHOTT look forward to
developed following vials and will expand to include growing this partnership through
a comprehensive other convenient, ready-to- more combined high-quality
materiality product offerings leveraging the
assessment and SCHOTT iQ portfolio as well
are published in as a range of West and Daikyo
Waters’ latest proprietary packaging components
sustainability in response to the needs of global
report, which customers and ultimately, serving
covers activities and patients.
progress from 2018
and key highlights PerkinElmer opens advanced
from 2019. A imaging facility in Pune
comprehensive
stakeholder PerkinElmer, Inc., a global leader committed to innovating for a healthier
materiality world, has announced PerkinElmer India’s opening of an Advanced In
assessment Vivo Imaging Facility at the Indian Institute of Science Education and
performed in 2018 Research (IISER) Pune. Featuring innovative testing and analysis solutions,
identified and the laboratory will help educate the region’s current and future scientists
prioritized the
company’s five 2025 on advanced small animal imaging
sustainability goals: technology which can help drive findings
Advance Innovation in oncology, toxicology, infectious
Ecosystem; Reduce disease and more. This separate facility,
Environmental which will also host an India-wide
Impact; Enhance event annually, joins the established
Sustainable PerkinElmer Centre of Excellence at
Supply Chain; IISER Pune which houses content
Lead by Example analysis and automated liquid handling
in Employee workstations, multispectral imaging and
Development and DNA/RNA analysis technologies. The
Engagement; and new In Vivo facility will feature PerkinElmer’s QuantumTM GX2 microCT
Nurture Culture of imaging system for longitudinal studies, used with AccuCT software to
Health, Safety and conduct bone, pulomary and soft tissue analysis; IVIS SpectrumTM in vivo
Well-being. imaging system, for high throughput with full tomographic optical imaging,
plus Imaging Wizard software for 3D data analysis, visualization and
reporting; and VICTOR NIVO multimode microplate reader.

BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com BIO EVENT 49

Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, government of India (in the centre) releasing ASSOCHAM
and KPMG report titled “Ayushman Bharat Conclave - Big leap towards Universal Health Coverage in India” along with (seen in
picture from L-R) Dr Sudhir Kalhan, Chairman, ASSOCHAM National Council on Healthcare & Chairman, Institute of Minimal
Access & Bariatric Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital; Rakesh Chitkara, Senior Director, Global Government Affairs, Abbott India;
Dr Praveen N. Gedam, Deputy CEO, AB-PMJAY & NHA; Nilachal Mishra, Partner, Health & Human Social Sciences, KPMG India.

AYUSHMAN BHARAT CONCLAVE

Healthcare is fast growing sector expected
to touch $280 billion: Dr Praveen Gedam
With an aim of discussing and describing the
role of Ayushman Bharat programme in care hospitalization. It is an umbrella of two major
shaping and elevating current healthcare health initiatives namely, Health and Wellness
system and to highlight the role of private sector Centres and National Health Protection Scheme
in successful adoption and implementation of the (NHPS).
programme, ASSOCHAM organized ‘Ayushman
Bharat Conclave’ on December 4, 2019 at New Delhi. Inaugurated by the Chief guest Ashwini Kumar
‘A Big Leap towards UHC in India’ was the theme of Choubey, Minister of State for Health & Family
this conclave. Welfare, government of India the conclave brought
together stakeholders from National Health
Ayushman Bharat Yojana or Pradhan Mantri Authority (NHA), Ministry of Health & Family
Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) or National Health Welfare, leading pharmaceutical companies, medical
Protection Scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme devices & diagnostic companies, healthcare providers
launched in 2018, under the Ayushman Bharat and health insurance companies on a single platform
Mission of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to discuss the implementation of the scheme so far
in India. The scheme aims to cover over 10 crore and the focus areas for its continued success.
poor and vulnerable families (approx. 50 crore
beneficiaries) providing health coverage upto Rs 5 While giving the special address, Dr. Praveen N.
lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary Gedam, Deputy CEO, AB-PMJAY & National Health
Authority said, “As you are aware that India has
made some significant progress over last three four

50 BIO EVENT BIOSPECTRUM | JANUARY 2020 | www.biospectrumindia.com

About the ASSOCHAM indicators in India have shown a remarkable
and KPMG report improvements due to existing healthcare ecosystem.
This has resulted in reduced infectious diseases,
The report provides a detailed overview of decreased infant mortality, improved maternal health
Ayushman Bharat and its two pillars, namely and increased overall life expectancy. However still a
Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) and lot needs to be done in this area. Primary healthcare
Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogaya Yojana (PMJAY). network is the gatekeeper for secondary and tertiary
It elaborates out how Ayushman Bharat is a healthcare. So, unless we strengthen this part of
big step towards universal health coverage the healthcare supply chain, it will be difficult for
and ways to leverage partnerships between secondary and tertiary infrastructure to sustain.”
the government and private sector as both are
important stakeholders contributing towards “We believe from industry perspective that
effective implementation of the initiative. The industry has significant role to play in this area
report also outlines the approach for effective specifically in those states where lot of work is
public private partnership and emphasises that a being done to upgrade primary healthcare centres
synergetic relationship between the government to health & wellness centres. The second is the
and private sector will assist in nurturing the package rates. We believe that current package
vision of ‘Health for All’. rates are bit conservative and need attention. The
package rate should keep pace. As newer technologies
decades in healthcare but there are still miles to go become available, we need to make sure that newer
before we reach a level where we can say we have a technologies are accessible through the beneficiaries
satisfactory healthcare system. The healthcare is very of Ayushman Bharat. Affordability of the healthcare
expanding and fast growing sector expected to touch service providers is extremely important to stand
280 billion dollars in next one or two years and we and continue standing the quality service to the
are saddled with immense amount of challenges. We patient. Third and the last is public healthcare system
are spending from the government side only slightly for secondary & tertiary healthcare system. We are
more than one percent of our GDP which is lowest in all aware that there are gaps that still exist. Some
the world and major cause of concern. We are also of them include inadequate infrastructure, lack of
characterized by very high out of pocket expenditure, diagnostics & treatment services and lack of skill. The
more than 62 per cent which is highest in the world private sector not only has a vital role but also has
along with low financial protection & low financial a responsibility to make sure this great initiative is
insurance resulting in people paying out of their successful.”
own pockets. Some studies have shown that due to
this huge out of pocket expenditure of catastrophic ASSOCHAM and KPMG jointly released a
nature, almost 6 crore people go below poverty line in report titled “Ayushman Bharat Conclave - Big
India which is a cause of concern. Ayushman Bharat leap towards Universal Health Coverage in India”.
hopes to address this serious problem of healthcare The purpose of this whitepaper is to find ways to
in India.” leverage partnerships between the government and
private sector as both are important stakeholders
Speaking at the inaugural session, Rakesh contributing towards rapid and effective
Chitkara, Senior Director, Global Government implementation of the scheme.
Affairs, Abbott India said “Ayushman Bharat is going
to play a critical role in achieving healthcare for all. The conclave also saw panel discussion on the role
This initiative has already become a global role- of Private Sector in Ayushman Bharat & Universal
model not just because of its sheer size but also for its Health Coverage where panelist from private as well
speed and implementation. We have already moved as public sector highlighted the role of private sector
into the phase 2 of Ayushman Bharat. In my capacity in successful running of Ayuhsman Bharat along with
of Chairman of National Pharmaceutical Committee other opportunities and challenges.
of ASSOCHAM and also while representing Abbott,
I would really like to flag couple of issues essentially Also present at the conclave were Lalit Mistry,
three key areas which we believe from industry Director-Healthcare, KPMG India; Varun Jhaveri,
perspective are important. The first step towards the Officer on Special Duty, National Health Authority;
Universal Health Coverage is strong & robust primary Dr Shuchin Bajaj, Promoter & Founder Director,
healthcare network. The good news is that we have Cygnus Hospitals; Dr Sandeep Chatrath, regional
made a significant step in the area. The healthcare CEO & Medical Director, Metro Group of Hospitals;
Vibhav Garg, Associate Secretary General, Indian
Pharmaceutical Alliance, Amit Kumar Singh, Director
(Government Affairs), Medtronic India along with
other stakeholders from public and private sector.