Collaborative research has not yet taken off. 
The biggest hitch, according to both camps, is that they want to achieve the same goals but through means that are poles apart.
"We are still waiting for the industry to develop its strength in order to be talking to research institutes as equal partners," says J. Gowrishankar, Director of the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics. Part of the issue stems from the fact that the industry is not really interested in new discovery but in rediscovery. On the other hand, research institutes want to be cutting edge and in the process concentrate on basic science and not applied research. "We are yet to find the meeting ground," he says.
Industry professionals have a different view. They think the academic culture in institutions does not allow scientists in India the scope to do much industry-oriented work. "The culture of publishing is an impediment. Scientists want to be seen as doing outstanding work and publishing that work in the best journals. Their personal growth in the academic institutes also hinges on this. The universities also suffer from lack of funds and antiquated labs," says J. V. Prasad, CEO of pharmaceutical company Dr Reddy's. He says companies such as his would rather want to work with a good research lab overseas since 'good science has no boundaries'.
Scientists who have switched gears to become part of industrial R&D after long stints in academia feel that the most prominent difference between the two worlds is how they look at time. "A company would like to get things developed as soon as possible because time is money for it. But academia, as I know, is relaxed. They may take twice or three times the time to develop a product," says Ashok Khar, who joined Shantha Biotechnics after working with the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad for about 25 years.
The company's experience with academic institutions has not been good, he says. "Many of the technologies that we have bought from academic institutes have not been successful. That's the reason we hesitate to liaison with them without really knowing what we will get," he says. However, he adds that Shantha has a large number of collaborative projects with many good institutions in India and abroad.
The other difficulty that research-based industries are facing is attrition. They are struggling to keep the product line moving without sufficient financial strength to get into fundamental R&D. "At the moment, 90 per cent of all the research in this country is supported by the government unlike the US where half the R&D is done by private companies," Gowrishankar says.
While hiring young researchers, industry recruiters don't really look at peer-review credentials. "It is the quality of the researcher," Khar says. Many universities have started self-financing departments of biotechnology and pharmaceutical studies. "They generate so many graduates and masters but there's no position. The industry is saturated. You can get a degree by paying money. But then you have no job."
The best researchers either go for a PhD to the topmost institutions or go abroad for higher studies. The leftover — the third grade — finally comes to the industry, their last priority. Companies then train them and are able to retain them for a couple of year before they leave for other companies who offer them better salaries and positions. Often they come back to the same company at higher positions. "Attrition is significantly high among younger researchers. The IT trend is now being repeated in Bt (biotechnology)," Khar points out.
Trained manpower is a big issue, Prasad says. "We get PhDs and entry level talent, but not people who can define a problem, identify research areas or provide thought leadership." He says the PhD system in India needs a change in orientation where scholars are also encouraged to think vigorously.
Prasad says his company aims to promote such cross-functional research through a collaborative venture with the University of Hyderabad "The venture, Institute of Life Sciences (ILS), is an example of such a research institute. The idea is to find solutions and not just do academic research," he says. The institute will focus on TB and malaria research. ILS is looking at partnering with global majors and public research bodies and hopes to be a good catalyst to create industry-ready manpower.
