The Hon’ble Minister for Science and Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh, visited the campus this morning. The Government has taken several early-­‐stage steps in creating enhanced institutions and facilities for higher education and research in India. One of these efforts is the Bangalore BioCluster including the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore (NCBS), the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine (inStem) and the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-­‐CAMP).
 
All the institutions at the Biocluster derive substantial core support from the Government of India, via the Departments of Biotechnology and Atomic Energy of the Government of India. Setting up of such a cluster of institutions has required concerted effort on the part of the researchers and the Government and has now resulted in the creation of structures that will enable a diversity of research approaches to be used for gaining an integrated view of life processes. Research outcomes from the Cluster are expected to be at par with the best life sciences laboratories worldwide.
 
According to Prof Satyajit Mayor, Director of NCBS and inStem, “The potential for doing biology that intersects with our local environment, whether it is our ecological or the clinical environment is now a reality. With the existence of different modes of doing research, individual laboratory based science (NCBS), research themes (inSTEM), supported by the availability of appropriate technology (CCAMP), this environment has the potential to do transformative work”.