Dr Pattanathu Rahman from the Institute of Biological and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Portsmouth was invited to India last month as part the British Council’s Biotechnology ‘Invited Lecture’ series.
Biotechnology is technology that uses biological systems or living organisms to develop or create different products.
Many everyday items fall within the concept of biotechnology, like bread, as it requires yeast, which is a living organism, to produce the desired product.
Dr Rahman’s visit was part of the ‘Invited Lecture’ series where UK academics were invited to promote biotechnology research and education and explore possibilities for academic partnerships through the British Council Biotechnology.
Dr Rahman visited 12 top ranking universities and research institutes in India between Thursday, February 21 and Friday, March 1 as part of British Council’s Biotechnology Mission to India programme.
Dr Rahman said: “In India, biotechnology is one of the leading industrial sectors for new opportunities for graduates and postgraduates to work in biopharmaceuticals, biotech companies or opportunities to create new businesses in bioeconomy.
“It’s long overdue for India to embrace the biotechnology industry, which is a great platform for business development.”
The main objective of the programme was to develop a platform for partnerships in the field of Biotechnology Studies at Indian Higher Education institutions and promote biotechnology related courses to potential students.
Dr Rahman is a leading expert in biotechnology and has recently published a research topic in Frontiers in Microbiology on microbiotechnology based surfactants and their applications.
It’s long overdue for India to embrace the biotechnology industry, which is a great platform for business development.