Page 41 - Plastics News September 2024
P. 41
FEATURE NEWS
"India aims to lead the next industrial revolution. Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnol-
Unlike the semiconductor industry, which arrived ogy in Delhi and the National Agri-Food Biotech-
in India 15-20 years later, we must seize this op- nology Institute in Mohali, he said. Gokhale said
portunity now. Biomanufacturing will help exist- India imports about three-fourths of its crude oil
ing industries meet growing demands for food and the goal is to replace some of this oil with
and fuel while also creating new job opportuni- products made from biomass, plastic waste, and
ties," Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary of the Depart- carbon dioxide over the next 20 years. Achiev-
ment of Biotechnology, ing this will require advanced technology and
scaling up production. "The BioE3 policy is de-
"The world has experienced several industrial signed to streamline these processes," he said.
revolutions -- driven by steam power, electricity, Citing an example, Gokhale said India is the larg-
oil, and information and communication technol- est producer of milk, but each person gets only
ogy. Countries that embraced new technologies 459 grams per day. With the population grow-
advanced more quickly. ing, increasing the number of cattle is not sus-
tainable due to land and water constraints, ris-
"The next revolution will be driven by the indus-
trialisation of biological sources and processes. ing feed costs, greenhouse gas emissions, and
antibiotic resistance, he said. Bio-manufacturing
Therefore, the BioE3 policy aligns with India's
goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047," could help meet dairy needs through non-dairy
milk alternatives and ensure resource sustain-
Gokhale said. he DBT secretary said biomanu-
facturing offers solutions to climate change, re- ability, he said. Scientists present at the briefing
mentioned that an Indian steel company is also
source depletion, waste generation, and pollution
through innovations like biotextiles and bioplas- working on integrating algal farms with its facili-
ties to capture carbon dioxide directly from ex-
tics. Enzymes and microbial strains are essential
for this process. Novazyme is a leading global haust gases.
producer of enzymes, he said. In India, research Source – The Economic Times
is underway at facilities like the International
PLASTICS NEWSASTICS NEWS
September 2024
September 2024 PL 41 43
