India's BioE3 Policy Drives Over 270 Biomanufacturing Projects and 15 Bio-AI Hubs Nationwide
Key Insights
The BioE3 Policy, approved in August 2024, has catalyzed over 270 funded projects across six thematic sectors including precision biotherapeutics, bio-based chemicals, and climate-resilient agriculture.
Seventeen biofoundry and biomanufacturing hub facilities have received funding, while 15 Bio-AI Hubs have been recommended to accelerate AI-driven biological design and translational research.
A BioE3-Strain Resource Centre has been established in Pune to provide indigenous microbial strains with freedom-to-operate, supporting the Make-in-India initiative and reducing reliance on imported technologies.
The Union Cabinet's BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment, & Employment) Policy, approved in August 2024, has rapidly translated into a nationwide biomanufacturing mobilization, with over 270 projects recommended for funding and 15 Bio-AI Hubs poised to integrate artificial intelligence into biological design and bioprocess optimization. Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, detailed the policy's implementation progress in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
The policy, aimed at fostering high-performance biomanufacturing across India, has drawn an overwhelming response from the scientific community. More than 2,000 proposals were received against 11 calls for proposals announced under six thematic sectors. Following multiple rounds of screening-cum-selection-committee meetings, over 270 projects were recommended for funding across two categories: discovery and application-oriented network research, and bridging the gap for scale-up.
Six Thematic Sectors Driving Biomanufacturing
The BioE3 Policy identified six thematic verticals through extensive national consultations and sectoral expert meetings: bio-based chemicals, biopolymers, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and enzymes; smart proteins and functional foods; precision biotherapeutics; climate-resilient agriculture; carbon capture and utilization; and futuristic marine and space research.
Under the bio-based chemicals and APIs sector, DBT and BIRAC (search) are supporting 18 projects for biomanufacturing of enzymes, spanning enzymes for converting low-cost feedstocks into high-value functional biomolecules, biomass-hydrolyzing enzymes, and enzymes for specialty chemicals and API production. Additional projects target import substitutes for bio-based chemicals including itaconic acid, succinic acid, squalene, and rhamnolipids, as well as biopolymers such as PLA, PHA, and nanocellulose.
In precision biotherapeutics, 27 projects are under implementation, covering CAR-T cell therapies for cancers, iPSC-derived therapies for ocular and neurodegenerative disorders, non-viral gene delivery systems, mRNA delivery platforms, and monoclonal antibodies (search) targeting cryptococcal meningitis (search), advanced-stage cancers, and rapid detection of Melioidosis (search).
The climate-resilient agriculture sector has 15 recommended proposals focusing on bio-based agri inputs, microbial consortia formulations, marine biostimulants, genome editing for climate resilience, and genomic selection for input use efficiency in crop plants. Meanwhile, 37 projects under carbon capture utilization emphasize integrated biomanufacturing solutions for industrial setups including cement, steel, and biorefineries.
BioEnablers: Infrastructure for Scale-Up
To augment these sectors, BioEnablers—including Bio-AI Hubs, Biofoundries, and Biomanufacturing Hubs—are being established nationwide. More than 450 proposals were received across the six thematic verticals, and 17 facilities have already received funding support under the first call for bioenablers.
DBT and BIRAC (search) jointly issued a call for proposals for the establishment of Bio-AI Hubs, receiving 284 Letters of Intent. Fifteen Bio-AI Hubs have been recommended for support, and a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to provide these hubs access to national AI infrastructure.
BioE3-Strain Resource Centre and Space Biomanufacturing
The Department of Biotechnology has established the BioE3-Strain Resource Centre (SRC) at BRIC-NCCS, Pune, providing access to high-performance indigenous microbial strains with freedom-to-operate for commercial utilization. This initiative enables unrestricted commercial use, faster scale-up, regulatory compliance, and retention of economic value within India, directly supporting the Make-in-India initiative by reducing reliance on imported strains and technologies.
In a notable development, DBT signed a framework MoU with ISRO (search) for collaboration in space biotechnology and space biomanufacturing. Three DBT-BRIC investigators participated in the AXIOM-4 mission through an ISRO-NASA collaboration, and 23 proposals were recommended for implementation under a joint ISRO-DBT announcement of opportunity.
Centre-State Partnerships and Public Engagement
A Centre-State Partnership Conclave on BioE3 Policy was organized on February 7, 2025, in New Delhi, focusing on identifying state-specific thematic areas for biomanufacturing and formulating State BioE3 Action Plans. BioE3 Cells have been notified in Assam, Sikkim, and Himachal Pradesh as coordination units for biomanufacturing activities. A network proposal involving institutes of BRIC and the Sikkim State Government has been supported to develop bio-based solutions for pest and pathogen management in large cardamom and to develop disease-tolerant varieties.
The nationwide 'Design for BioE3' contest received 748 entries from school students (Category 1) and 4,166 entries from citizens (Category 2) between November 2025 and June 2026.
GenomeIndia and AI-Enabled Biotechnology
In parallel, the GenomeIndia project has completed sequencing of 10,174 whole genomes, creating a national genomic variation catalogue and establishing a biobank with over 20,000 biospecimens. The project identified nearly 180 million genetic variants, including approximately 7 million novel variants, and is now promoting downstream research and indigenous precision medicine applications using AI/ML tools.
The Indian Biological Data Centre (IBDC) has been established as a national repository with high-performance computing infrastructure and seven specialized biological data repositories. A national AI-enabled medical imaging resource repository now contains over one million radiology images and 20,000 pathology images of head and neck cancer, enabling development of AI algorithms for precision oncology.
Under the Grand Challenges India program, the AI for Ultrasound (AI for USG) initiative, implemented in collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is developing multi-site validations for AI-enabled ultrasound solutions targeting maternal and fetal health, leveraging clinical datasets from the Garbh-Ini program.
The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) further supports biotechnology and AI-driven research through competitive funding schemes, including the Mission for Advancement in High-impact Areas (MAHA) with its Artificial Intelligence for Science and Engineering (AI-SE) program and the newly launched MAHA MedTech Mission for affordable indigenous medical technologies.
A public-private co-creation model underpins the BioE3 Policy implementation, with DBT providing grant-in-aid to academia, BIRAC (search) supporting start-ups and academia, and SMEs and industries receiving co-funding and royalty-sharing arrangements. Thematic area-specific screening-cum-selection committees, a Financial Evaluation Committee, and an Apex Committee comprising members from both academia and industry have been established to ensure periodic review of sanctioned projects.