About RCB
Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB) was established by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India with regional and global partnerships synergizing with the programmes of UNESCO. The primary focus of RCB is to provide world-class education, training, and conduct innovative research at the expanding interface of multiple disciplines to create high-quality human resources in interdisciplinary areas of biotechnology. The programmes of the Centre are designed to create opportunities for students and researchers to engage in high-quality research that endeavours to address issues of human and animal health, agriculture, and the environment for sustainable societal development goals.
The programmes of the Centre are designed to create opportunities for students and researchers to engage in high-quality research that endeavours to address issues of human and animal health, agriculture, and the environment for sustainable societal development goals.
The mission of the Centre is to create opportunities for multi-disciplinary education, training, and research in biotechnology. The overarching vision is to generate human resources tailored to drive innovation in biotechnology, particularly in emergent areas of new opportunities, and also to strengthen the contemporary areas of industrial signicance. The Centre has been recognized in 2016 as an 'Institution of National Importance' for biotechnology education, training, and research through an act of the Indian Parliament. The Centre is also regarded as a "Category II Centre" in terms of "the principles and guidelines for the establishment and functioning of UNESCO Institutes and Centres".
Mandate
The mandate of the Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB) is to provide a platform for biotechnology education, training and research at the inter face of multiple disciplines. The programmes of the Centre are designed to create opportunities for students to engage in multi-disciplinary research where they learn biotech science while integrating engineering, medicine and natural sciences, to provide solutions for human and animal health, agriculture and environmental technologies.
The vision of RCB is to produce human resource tailored to drive innovation in biotechnology, particularly in areas of new opportunities and also to ll talent gaps in decient areas. The Centre is regarded as a “Category 2 Centre” of UNESCO in terms of the principles and guidelines for the establishment and functioning of UNESCO Institutes and Centres.
Objectives
- to disseminate and to advance knowledge by providing instructional and research facilities in such branches of biotechnology and related fields as it may deem fit including technology policy development,
- to provide capacity-building through education, training, research, and development in biotechnology and related academic fields for sustainable development objectives through regional and international cooperation,
- to facilitate transfer of knowledge and technology relating to biotechnology at the regional level,
- to create a hub of biotechnology expertise and to address human resource needs in the countries in the region,
- to promote and strengthen international co-operation to improve the social and economic conditions and welfare of the people,
- to promote and facilitate a network of satellite centres in the region as well as within India.
Functions
- to establish infrastructure and technology platforms which are directly relevant to biotechnology education, training, and research,
- to execute educational and training activities including grant of degrees in education and research in biotechnology and related fields,
- to produce human resource tailored to drive innovation in biotechnology, particularly in areas of new opportunities and to fill talent gap in deficient areas,
- to undertake research and development and scientific investigations in collaboration with relevant research centres in the region,
- to hold scientific symposia and conferences within India or in the region or outside the region and to conduct short-term and long-term training courses and workshops in all areas of biotechnology,
- to collect universally available information with a view to setting up data banks for bio- information,
- to collect and disseminate, through networking, the relevant local knowledge in the field of biotechnology, ensuring protection of intellectual property rights of local stakeholder communities,
- to develop and implement a policy for intellectual property rights which is equitable and just to the stakeholders involved in research in the Regional Centre,
- to disseminate the outcome of research activities in different countries through the publication of books and articles,
- to promote collaborative research and development networking programme in specific areas of biotechnology with national, regional and international networks and promote exchange of scientists at the regional level having regard to issues pertaining to intellectual property rights of collaborating institutions promoting equitable sharing of benefits with collaborating institutions.
