'India has edge in drug discovery'

"India is placed uniquely and is sitting on a gold mine - the cost advantage and human resource pool. Therefore, India can be a natural ally for developed nations for drug discovery," said Kapil Sibal, union minister for science and technology at Bangalore Bio 2006 today.

The US spends around $2 billion on a single drug development, whereas the same drug can be developed in India for about $500 million. This opportunity has to be exploited fully, Sibal said.

"Though there are several low cost economies in Africa and Asian countries, they do not have the skilled workforce. The combination of skilled workforce and low cost economy is not available anywhere else in the world including China," Sibal said.

Sibal also urged India scientists and researchers to begin innovating and investing money in developing drugs for life threatening diseases which affecting the poor nations.

Drugs developed by US and European companies serve totally different diseases and target population, and do not give priority to the diseases of the poor and poor nations.

Acknowledging Bangalore to be the birth place of innovation in India, Sibal said, "Bangalore is home for research and science institutes. Bangalore and its people have grown and they have become legends. The reputation of Bangalore as a technology capital is recognised all over the world."