Technology Development Board (TDB), a statutory body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), has probably made the kind of impact that most of the venture capital funds (VCFs) will be envious of. It was probably one of its kind organisation established in 1996, under an act of Parliament, with a single aim of commercialisation of indigenised technology. The mandate was simple and with no frills but with a huge sense of responsibility given to a very small team. The teams have come and gone over the years, making their impact in the technology funding ecosystem of India silently.
If we follow the growth of the biotech sector in India, TDB ‘s role could probably only be dwarfed by its parent ministry DST and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT). In this sector, companies like Bharat Biotech, Biocon, Ranbaxy, Biological E, Panacea Biotech, Yashraj Biotechnology etc have all been supported by TDB for their projects at some point in time, mostly in early stages. During Covid, Indian biotech companies manufacturing vaccines for the world, after absorbing their technologies, or Bharat Biotech making a vaccine within a year of the pandemic, did not happen overnight. But it started in the late nineties when TDB funded Shantha Biotech and Bharat Biotech for the Hepatitis B vaccine, the first indigenous vaccine made in India. The impact of this funding was such that the price of Hepatitis B vaccine dropped from $23 to $1 worldwide! Six out of seven Covid vaccine manufacturers in India, today, are supported by TDB in their entrepreneurial journey.
In India, UTI was the first company to start a venture scheme under the name of India Technology Venture Scheme in 1997. In 1999, UTI executive trustee met the then chairperson and secretary and requested TDB’s participation in a venture capital fund. The Board approved TDB’s participation in the UTI-India Technology Venture Unit Scheme (ITVUS) with a commitment of Rs 25 crore. This was the first commitment by TDB to any VCF. TDB participated in 11 such funds thereafter. The beneficiaries of TDB-supported VCs are among the largest venture funds in India today. The names like Blume Ventures, Ivy Cap Ventures, CIIE etc shall ring a bell for people associated with the startup ecosystem today. Yet again, silently, TDB acted as a catalyst in the startup and VC ecosystem in India which, today, is the pride of India.
TDB has been the organisation that has toiled relentlessly and has delivered on its mandate over the years without much of the fanfare that’s usually associated with technology financing. There would be very few government organisations or venture funds whose portfolio can boast of supporting such diverse technologies such as the first vaccine (Shantha Biotech), the first electric car (Reva), the first indigenous car (Indica), the first dialysis machine with IoT (Renylax), the first RT-PCR kit (Mylabs), the first thousand drone shows done (Botlab Dynamics), the first Bio-CNG commercial plant from sewage waste (Anaerobic Pvt Limited) etc, all done through indigenous technology with TDB providing financial support ranging from Rs 7.5 lakh to Rs 250 crore.
It is not easy to measure the achievement of an organisation whose mandate is not bounded by the ocean or the sky and whose aim is to support the entrepreneurs who dream of discovering new frontiers, pushing the boundaries and impacting society through new technologies. And yet, in this challenging domain of technology commercialisation, TDB can boast of some serious and remarkable achievements.
Technology Development Board’s forte has been providing financial support to risky technologies even at the risk of failure. In the words of KI Varaprasad Reddy, the founder of Shantha Biotech (the first indigenous vaccine manufacturer), there were very few financial institutions in those days that understood technology and would support new technologies owing to the huge uncertainty and financial risks involved in such projects. Those who have worked in the government would agree that funding such risky commercial projects for the private sector, within the governmental framework, requires a special skill set. However, TDB has consistently done that since its inception. The list of TDB-supported companies is varied and impressive. But where it has been outstanding is the breadth and depth of the technologies that it has supported. From agriculture to aerospace, from biotech to deep tech, TDB has all types of projects under its portfolio and yet it remains an unsung and unknown soldier in the technology domain, going about its job in an unassuming but dedicated manner.
Cdr. Navneet Kaushik serves as Senior Scientist with Technology Development Board, Government of India. The views expressed in the article are solely that of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s employer/institution.
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