Growing resistance to antibiotic medicines is very serious threat to our society & to all of humanity: HM Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a ‘silent disaster’, to tackle it, a clear roadmap, timely treatment, and spreading awareness to every individual are essential

Shah laid the foundation stone of the BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility of the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre in Gandhinagar, the capital of Gujarat.

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Addressing the gathering, the Union Home Minister said, “The growing resistance to antibiotic medicines is a very serious threat to our society and to all of humanity. It is like a ‘silent disaster’.”

He said AMR is a major crisis for the entire society, and in the coming days it will also become a cause of widespread transmission affecting future generations.

“To tackle AMR, a clear roadmap, timely treatment, and spreading awareness to every individual are essential. Our goal should be to prevent infections and to keep antibiotics safe for future generations,” the Union Home Minister said.

Shah added that development and science are not against heritage; both are the needs of the nation’s people, and both can move forward together.

The Minister noted there has been unprecedented growth in the field of biotechnology in over the past 11 years.

“We have achieved significant success in the bio sector and there is immense potential in this area,” Shah said.

He noted in 2014, India’s bio-economy was worth USD 10 billion, and by the end of the financial year 2024, it had grown to USD 166 billion.

Shah added that a 17-fold growth in just 10 years shows that India’s youth and entrepreneurs can achieve great success in the bio-economy sector, provided they receive support from the government and the necessary infrastructure.

The Union Home Minister stated in 2014, there were fewer than 500 startups working in the biotechnology sector, which has increased to over 10,000 by 2025.

“The number of bio-incubators was 6 in the year 2014, and it has risen to 95 by 2025. We had 60,000 square feet of incubation space earlier, which has increased 15 times to 9 lakh square feet today. Earlier there were only a few products in the market, but now more than 800 products have been launched,” he said.

On the occasion, several dignitaries, including Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, were present.