After having taken a head start over Andhra Pradesh in information technology (IT), Karnataka seems to be slowly catching up with its neighbour on the biotechnology front. Biogenus India Ltd., the Indian arm of the US-based biotechnology firm Biogenus Inc., signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Karnataka Government on Monday to set up an aqua culture research centre at Gokarna, Kumta, in Uttara Kannada district and a bacterial culture and enzymes plant in Bangalore.‘‘We will be making a capital expenditure of $4 million at the aqua culture research centre and $11 million investment for setting up the enzyme plant,’’ K.S. Reddy, Chief Executive Officer of Biogenus India, said at the MoU signing ceremony. He said the firm was also committed to make an additional investment of $20 million for the development of the farmers of the Uttara Kannada region.The Millennium Biotech Policy had announced the setting up of a Marine Biotech Park in Uttara Kannada district and it is at this park that the aqua culture project will take off.Reddy said the Bangalore plant will have a capacity to produce 10,000 tonne of enzymes and will cater to the world market. ‘‘The aqua culture research centre will have a capacity to produce 5,000 tonne of microbial cultures. It will not just be an aqua culture centre, but it will be a marine biotechnology research centre,’’ he said.The speciality products will cater to bio-remediation, pharma, brewery, dairy and cheese industry, and sanitation among others.Biogenus has earmarked $75-million investment for India, of which it is setting up $25-million aqua media plant at Kakinada and $10-million technology development centre in Hyderabad, for which it had already signed an MoU with the Andhra Pradesh Government in January.‘‘Besides, we are also looking at a water body remediation venture for providing people with potable water. We are still working on it and in the next couple of months, we will ground this venture,’’ Reddy said. He said the firm had taken up a pilot project in Hyderabad to clean a lake using bio-remediation technology.‘‘Bio-remediation is about reviving and sustaining the water bodies using the patented biotech processes developed in-house. This will help to improve the quality of ground water and decontamination of water stream,’’ Reddy said.He said all the five business operations would go on stream by the year-end. ‘‘This will give direct employment to 1,000 people,’’ he added.Reddy also said the firm would be signing an MoU with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for conducting joint research in pollution control.He also said that shrimp cultivation in coastal Andhra Pradesh had been a failure due to pollutants and virus attacks. ‘‘With our technology, we can produce better quality shrimps in the existing eco system,’’ Reddy said.
