Lok Sabha Question No. 1696 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-12-08
Subject: Foreign Assistance
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Gowdar Mallikarjunappa Siddeshwara

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION No.1696

TO BE ANSWERED ON 08/12/2021

## FOREIGN ASSISTANCE

1696. SHRI G.M. SIDDESHWAR:

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ǒव£ान और Ĥौƭोिगकȧ

मंğी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has received foreign assistance through international  agreements  for  carrying  out  research  programmes/ project in the country?
- (b) if so, the details of the foreign assistance received during each of the last three years and the current year; and
- (c)  the  details  of  the  direct  and  indirect  conditions  imposed  on recipient institutions/ bodies by the donors?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

ǒव£ान और Ĥौƭोिगकȧ तथा पृØवी ǒव£ान मंğालय क े राÏय मंğी (

èवतंğ Ĥभार) (डॉ. ǔजतɅġ िसंह)

- (a) & (b): No  foreign  assistance  has  been  received  through international agreements for carrying out research programmes/projects by the Department of Science and Technology and Council of  Scientific  and  Industrial  Research  in  the  Ministry  of Science and Technology.

The details of foreign assistance received by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology during each of the last three years and the current year is given at Annexure.

- (c): The  details  of  the  direct  and  indirect  conditions  imposed  on recipient institutions/bodies under DBT by the donors are as under:

Mostly, foreign assistance is governed  by program/project specific collaboration agreements, which includes the following;

- (i) Various terms & conditions with respect to the modalities of  the  funding,  duration  of  the  program,  project  implementation activities, milestones, data access/contribution framework(s), reports, project monitoring activities etc.
- (ii) The recipient institutions are required to be not-for-profit and located in India.
- (iii) All findings are to be submitted to the Funding Agency
- (iv) Funding should be duly acknowledged in the publications and patents.

## Annexure  to  part  (a)  &  (b)  of  the  Lok  Sabha  Unstarred  Question No.1696 for 08.12.2021

The details of the foreign assistance received during each of the last three years and the current year is as under:

- (i) The department partnered with Wellcome Trust, UK in 2008 to establish Biomedical Research Career Programme  (BRCP).  The program  is  administered  by  the  trust  'DBT/Wellcome  Trust-India Alliance'. The program provides opportunities to early, intermediate and senior level researchers to establish their research & academic career in Basic biomedical or Clinical & Public Health in India.

The assistance provided to the DBT/Wellcome  Trust-India Alliance  from  Wellcome  Trust,  UK  during  last  three  years  and  the current year are placed below:

| Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   |
|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
| 2018-19                 | 2019-20                 | 2020-21                 | 2021-22 (Till Date)     |
| 5,000                   | 5,987                   | 6,587                   | --                      |

- (ii) The National Biopharma Mission was approved by the Cabinet for implementation in May 2017 with a total cost US$ 250 million with 50% co-funding  by  the  World  Bank.  The  mission  of  the  programme  is  to enable and nurture an ecosystem for preparing India's technological and product development capabilities in biopharmaceuticals to a level that will be globally competitive over the next decade, and transform the health standards of India's population through affordable product development.

The  total  assistance  provided  to  the  Biotechnology  Industry Research  Assistance  Council  (BIRAC),  for  implementation  of  the National  Biopharma  Mission  in  last  3  years  and  current  year  is  as follows, 50% of which is reimbursed by the World Bank:

| Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   |
|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
| 2018-19                 | 2019-20                 | 2020-21                 | 2021-22 (Till Date)     |
| 14,500                  | 15,000                  | 30,000                  | --                      |

- (iii) The Department and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), came  together  in  2012  to  collaborate  on  supporting  scientific  and technological research for the benefit of the people of India and rest of the world. The programme being managed by BIRAC and receives equal contribution from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), USA. In 2016, Wellcome Trust also entered  into  partnership  with  PMU-BIRAC  to  provide  translational research thrust into the programs.

The details of the foreign assistance during each of the last three years and the current year is as follows:

| Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   |
|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
| 2018-19                 | 2019-20                 | 2020-21                 | 2021-22 (Till Date)     |
| 39.82                   | 39.67                   | 37.06                   | 0.73                    |

- (iv) The foreign assistance received by Autonomous Institutes of the Department of Biotechnology through various International programs/projects is placed below:

|                                                                              | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   | Amount (INR in Lakhs)   |
|------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
| Autonomous Institute                                                         | 2018- 19                | 2019- 20                | 2020-21                 | 2021-22 (Till Date)     |
| DBT-National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi           | 55.83                   | 15.26                   | 38.80                   | Nil                     |
| DBT-Translational Health Science And Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad | 1707.22                 | 1285.43                 | 301.57                  | 67.61                   |
| DBT-Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), Thiruvananthapuram         | 168                     | 150                     | 167                     | 194                     |
| DBT-Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), Hyderabad          | 79.36                   | Nil                     | Nil                     | Nil                     |

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