Growing career opportunities in biotechnology
Biotechnology unifies biology and technology by covering a wide range of topics such as agriculture, livestock, biochemistry, biostatistics, cell biology, chemistry, crop management, farming system, ecology, engineering, genetics, health, immunology, medicine, microbiology , plant physiology, soil science, soil conservation, seed technology and virology, etc. In biotechnology, living things, especially cells and bacteria, are used in industrial processes. Through this research, various drugs and vaccines are developed.
Scope of biotechnology in India
There is an immense possibility of getting jobs in this field as the demand for biotechnologists is growing both in India and abroad. It is estimated that more than 6,000 highly qualified biotechnologists are required in India according to the survey conducted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Eligibility Criteria for Entering the Biotechnology Field
Eligibility for this field requires a bachelor’s degree in science, that is, in physics, chemistry, and biology. There is B.Tech for college students. Some universities in India offer the B.Sc Biotechnology which you can join after class 12 or equivalent exam, with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. Graduates in all sciences, engineering technology or medicine are eligible for the postgraduate course (M.Sc.) in biotechnology.
PG courses are available in M. Sc. Biotechnology, M. Sc. (Agriculture) Biotechnology, MVSc. (Animal) Biotechnology, M.Tech. Biotechnology, M.Sc./MVSc. in Veterinary Biotechnology, Masters in Biotechnology (Marine) and many other courses available.
Institutes that teach biotechnology courses
Here are some well-known biotechnology institutions, offering postgraduate courses in the subjects:
o Indian Institute of Sciences, Bangalore
o Indian Institute of Agricultural Research, New Delhi
o Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi
o GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Uttar Pradesh
o National Center for Plant Genome Research, New Delhi
o National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi
o National Dairy Research Institute, Bangalore
The following are some of the universities that also offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in biotechnology:
o Osmania University, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh
o Visva-Bharati, Birbhum, West Bengal
o University of Madras, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
o Mysore University of Biotechnology, Karnataka
o Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
o Benaras Hindu University
o University of Patna, Bihar
o University of Rajasthan, Rajasthan
o Biotechnology Banglore University, Karnataka
o Sai College of Medical Science and Technology, Uttar Pradesh
o Gulbarga University of Biotechnology, Karnataka
jobs in biotechnology
Biotechnology as a topic has grown rapidly. A biotechnologist can enter government institutes and organizations such as the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Rajiv Gandhi Center for Education, Science and Technology Development in Thiruvananthapuram.
Other fields include institutes of agriculture, dairy, and horticulture. Pharmaceutical companies like Dabur, Ranbaxy, Hindustan Lever and Dr. Reddy’s Labs, and many more. The food processing industry, the chemical industry, and the textile industry are other areas where you can look for work. Hindustan Lever, Thapar Group, Indo American Hybrid Seeds, Bincon India Ltd., IDPL, Hindustan Antibiotics, etc. are some of the big companies that employ biotechnologists.
Remuneration in the field of biotechnology
India is the next frontier of biotech and there is immense scope to gain big in this field, but as always, the more read you are, the more you can expect. Compensation factors depend on academic qualification, college or university from which the degree was obtained, and level of work experience.
In the corporate sector, a cooler with B.Sc. or B.Tech. degree can expect between 5,000 and 7,000 rupees per month. Candidates with Masters, PhD or research experience can expect between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000 per month. The salary increases with your experience, but due to the lower number of openings in this field compared to other sectors, salary increases are low.