BIRAC DEPARTMENTS

BIRAC’s in-house IP & Technology Management Department provides support to innovators, start-ups, institutes, academia and SMEs on Patent Searches (Freedom-To-Operate, Patent landscape, Patentability search), facilitation of Patent drafting & filing, Technology Transfer, licensing and commercialization. Further, to build the capacity in the domain and to sensitize the innovators on IP & Tech Transfer, the Department conducts domain specific programs. The Department is also involved in mentoring the start-ups, innovators and researchers on safeguarding the innovations, building the IP Portfolio and connects them to the industry for further development and commercialization.

Technical Department is responsible for technical due diligence of the proposals received under different schemes/activities of BIRAC and mentoring/monitoring of the same once they are funded. Further, the Department facilitates achievement of TRL 3, 7, 8 and 9 of different projects by closely working with the grantees. In addition, the Department identifies niche areas and takes the responsibility of developing niche areas by way of providing funding & organizing hands on trainings etc. The Department also facilitates converting academic discoveries into commercial products and product/technology commercialization.

The Investment Department is responsible for complete grant management of some of the major funding schemes of BIRAC i.e. i4 (Intensifying the Impact of Industrial Innovation) which has two components, SBIRI (Small Business Innovation Research Initiative) & BIPP (Biotechnology Industry Partnership Programme). PACE (Promoting Academic Research Conversion to Enterprise) having two components i.e. AIR (Academic Innovation Research) and CRS (Contract Research Scheme. In addition to the regular schemes, the Department. also manages various agriculture related projects.

This Department spearheads and leads varied activities and initiatives for Start-up and Entrepreneurship Development at the national level. SPED Department activities includes, establishing, supporting & scaling up network of high-end specialized facilities through Bio-incubation program across the country. It also includes, designing and implementing early-stage funding programmes to enable start-ups and innovators take their innovations from idea to Proof-of-Concept. It designs and implements Equity Fund & Fund of Funds programs and serves as ‘go-to’ partner for national & global organisations that wish to foster biotech innovation. Enhancing, capacity building, providing access to enabling and mentoring services and creating networking/showcasing opportunities for innovators.

BDCOM Department is mandated to scout for potential collaborations and forge strategic alliances aligned with BIRAC's mission and objectives. The Communications Department within the Department crafts and disseminates coherent messages about BIRAC's initiatives, achievements, and impact to the outside world. The Department endeavours to position BIRAC as a central enabler for the country’s bio economy growth and enhance BIRAC's visibility, both nationally and internationally, through targeted campaigns, media relations, and close engagement with stakeholders.

Regulatory Affairs & Policy Advocacy Department is mandated to navigate the dynamic regulations and policies impacting Start-ups, SMEs and young entrepreneurs. The aim of this Department is “To drive innovation through navigation of regulatory complexities, harmonization of global regulations, and advocate for policies that catalyse the growth of start-ups, SMEs, and entrepreneurs in the dynamic landscape of regulatory and policy affairs.
The main objectives of RAPA Department include foster innovation by assisting entrepreneurs in navigating regulatory challenges, dedicated policy advocacy with industry and Government bodies to ensure alignment with national missions and the needs of innovators, facilitate harmonization of regulations at national and global levels and to publish impactful white papers/concept notes based on Stakeholders’ consultative meets.

The mandate of National Biopharma Mission is to enable, nurture and catalyze an ecosystem to advance India’s technological and product development capabilities in biopharmaceuticals, to globally standards over the next decade and transform the health standards of India’s population through affordable product development. NBM is mainly focused on product development in 3 product categories, i.e., Vaccines, Biotherapeutics and Medical Devices as well as Diagnostics along strengthening biopharma ecosystem with emphasis on supporting shared screening and manufacturing facilities, Clinical trial networks, Translational Research consortiums, skill development and Technology transfer.
A total of 143 projects have been supported till now in all the verticals, with many success stories both in terms of novel product development or ecosystem strengthening.

Grand Challenges India (GCI), a collaborative initiative of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), managed through Program Management Unit (PMU).
Adopting Grand Challenges Model, this partnership, in the last 10 years, supported thematic open calls and thrust-based specialized programs in diverse areas under maternal and child health, nutrition, sanitation, infectious disease, data science, agriculture development, and vaccines in alignment with the Government of India priorities such as the National Health Mission Atmanirbhar Bharat, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, National Nutrition Mission, Make in India etc. GCI manages 37 programs at various stages in their lifecycle; from basic science research in laboratories, to proof-of-concept projects and potentially to scale-up innovation projects across the aforesaid thematic areas.

The Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India is supporting the implementation of the Ind-CEPI Mission, “Epidemic preparedness through rapid vaccine development: Support of Indian vaccine development aligned with the global initiative of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)”, through a dedicated Program Management Unit (PMU) at Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).

Human resource, Administration & Information Technology Department is an inseparable component of BIRAC, strategizing the personnel policies, along with the framework of Information Technology. It maximises potential of the Human resources of the organisation to attain organizational goals in an effective and efficient manner. In line of that, the primary responsibility of this Department. is to manage, assist & deal with all employee related matters including such functions beginning from manpower planning to budgeting, policy administration, recruitment, benefits administration, contract management, new employee orientation, training and development, personnel records retention, salary administration, tenders & procurements, compliances, wage management, inventory, manpower planning, logistics etc.

BIRAC is a Section 8 not for profit Company and a CPSE under Department of Biotechnology. Corporate and Legal Affairs is headed by a Company Secretary with two separate wings-Corporate Affairs which handles Board meetings and General meetings matters , DPE Compliances, RTI and other Statutory &Regulatory matters & Legal Affairs which handles all Policy and Scheme related matters like Agreements, MoUs, GLA, National- International Agreements, Legal Due Diligence and Litigation matters before Hon’ble Courts and Tribunals.

Finance & Accounts Department is mandated to efficiently implement the decisions, and reliable processing, recording, reporting of financial transactions, safeguarding of financial resources. It contributes to overall mandate of BIRAC by providing effective accounting control over assets, liabilities, revenues, expenditure and providing timely, reliable and accurate financial statements of BIRAC.