Jammu: Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Monday inaugurated the BioNEST Incubator at north India’s first industrial biotech park in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, terming it the beginning of a new era of scientific enterprise and economic transformation.
With around 11,000 startups in India’s biotech sector and 25 new startups being incubated at the Kathua Biotech Park, the region is poised to become a harbinger of prosperity and innovation, Singh pointed out.
Calling it a landmark development, he said, “This is a day that Kathua and the entire Jammu region will remember as the beginning of a new era of scientific enterprise and economic transformation”.
Addressing the gathering, he noted that the facility will help the youth of the region develop a new outlook and entrepreneurial mindset.
“Earlier, people were not aware of the concept of incubation and biotech parks. In 2014, many such centres began developing across India, changing the outlook of youth – but in this region, people still depended on government jobs,” he said.
Recalling the park’s foundation, the minister said, “In 2014, there were only 10 such centres in India. The Kathua Biotech Park became the 11th, and at that time, it was difficult for people to envisage the development it could bring to the entire northern region”.
Since the park’s inauguration in 2022, the challenge has been to make it functional by creating a self-sustaining ecosystem. “This led to the establishment of BioNEST (Bioincubators Nurturing Entrepreneurship for Scaling Technologies), which will drive technology-based innovation and help startups sustain themselves in the long term,” he said.
Speaking to reporters, Singh said the BioNEST Centre will offer state-of-the-art facilities, such as distillation, fermentation, plant tissue culture, genetic processing, and multiple research platforms, enabling the incubation of 25 startups every year.
“North India’s first Industrial Biotech Park is a flagship project of the Union Ministry of Science and Technology, implemented by CSIR-IIIM Jammu,” he said, appealing to youth and agri-entrepreneurs to leverage the incubation and training facilities.
Emphasising Kathua’s strategic advantage, he said, “Kathua is among the best-connected destinations in North India. The region has abundant natural resources that are yet to be fully tapped. Its location and biodiversity make it the ideal destination for biotechnology-led growth”.
Singh added that the growth in the coming years will come from unexplored areas and untapped sectors, with the Himalayan region offering vast potential for investment and career opportunities for the youth.
He said the facility will serve as a gateway for innovation not only for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh but also for neighbouring states like Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. Six startups were enrolled on the inaugural day and will receive training and incubation support at the park.
Singh urged the youth to prepare themselves to become “job givers instead of job seekers”, adding that the National Education Policy provides flexibility and choice for innovation-driven careers.
The minister lauded the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), and CSIR-IIIM Jammu for their collaborative efforts, calling the initiative an example of cooperative federalism between central and state institutions and research organisations.
