19 Startups, 5 Students Win 15 Cr in C-CAMP BIRAC National Bio Entrepreneurship Competition 2024

From our special correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bangalore, August 11: The C-CAMP National Bio Entrepreneurship Competition (NBEC) 2024, supported by the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), Bengaluru, saw the emergence of 19 startups and 5 student innovators.

The winning startups received a total of Rs 15 crore in cash prizes and investment opportunities, while the student-led teams secured Rs 5 lac in cash prizes across various awards presented during the Grand Finale. The selected winners will also receive mentorship through partnerships with key industry leaders.

This year’s competition attracted over 3,300 entries from 33 states and union territories, including a significant number from second- and third-tier cities, demonstrating the quality and richness of biotech ideas emerging from smaller towns across the country.

The winning projects addressed key challenges in areas such as cancer screening and treatment, rapid diagnostics, non-communicable disease management, dermatological health, AI-powered data analytics for medical applications, animal health, agriculture, aquaculture, water and sanitation including wastewater treatment, food and nutraceuticals, biofuels, biopolymers and clean technologies.

The judging panel was led by Prashanth Prakash, CEO, Karnataka Start-up Vision Group and Partner at Accel Partners, along with experts from NBEC 2024 partners: WIN Foundation, Novonesis, Anthem Biosciences, Mahyco, Aurigene, Loreal Research and Innovation, Social Alpha, Indian Angel Network & Bio angels, IIMA Ventures, Accel, Molecular Connections, Biocon, Biocon Biologics, Syngene, Synapses, and Biocombinator.

The 22 finalists were selected from a total of 62 startups that qualified for the final based on the parameters of innovation, scalability and business potential.

IT-BT and Rural Development Minister Priyank Kharge, who presented the awards, said the state government is constantly improving its programmes and policies to support entrepreneurs, especially in the challenging field of bio-entrepreneurship.

With a longer learning curve and maturation period, bio-entrepreneurs play a key role in solving real-world problems. The government is committed to accelerating the biotech sector and supporting biotech startups. Karnataka contributes almost one-fifth of the country’s bioeconomy and initiatives like NBEC have effectively identified and developed our talent pool.

C-CAMP is the heart of Bengaluru’s bio-entrepreneurship ecosystem, supporting and nurturing young entrepreneurs to innovate, incubate and drive change. The NBEC cohort will not only foster innovative solutions but also contribute to economic growth, create jobs and elevate India’s presence in the global market, he said.