In a landmark step towards advancing biomedical research for the welfare of our forces, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBPF) and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), under the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The signing ceremony was graced by the Secretary, DBT, and Director General, ITBPF at the ITBP Headquarters in New Delhi.

This collaboration aims to harness the expertise of ITBPF’s specialized medical and paramedical facilities and DBT’s robust research and innovation ecosystem to address critical scientific and technological challenges of national importance. ITBPF and DBT will undertake joint research projects, focusing on areas such as human adaptability to high altitudes, biosecurity, biomedical devices, prosthetics and food biotechnology etc., as per the requirement of the forces. This partnership underscores the commitment of ITBPF and DBT to foster innovation, enhance research capabilities, and contributing to India’s scientific progress, in alignment with the vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) plays a pivotal role in fostering innovation, building national and international partnerships, and enabling translational research. The DBT-Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council (BRIC) oversees 13 institutions and International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB) are equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure and expertise in interdisciplinary areas of biotechnology. Together, they are driving multidisciplinary research, advanced training, and the implementation of innovation programs across sectors to address national challenges and priorities.

The Secretary, DBT in his remark mentioned that this MoU is a guiding framework for our collaborative efforts in biomedical research and academics. It paves the way for impactful projects, such as studying human adaptability to high altitudes, and strengthens our commitment to addressing multidisciplinary challenges for the nation’s benefit.

The Director General, ITBP Shri Rahul Rasgotra said: “This collaboration with the Department of Biotechnology is a significant step towards enhancing the health, resilience and operational readiness of our personnel deployed in the most challenging high-altitude terrains. The MoU is an enabling instrument for working on specific problems to develop scientific solutions that can be implemented on the ground. It is thus hoped that our acknowledged biomedical research capabilities will serve to enhance the nation’s security in the extreme environment of the Northern border”.

The collaboration between the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is likely to result in innovative, science-driven solutions tailored to the unique operational challenges of ITBP personnel. The joint effort will leverage DBT's robust biotechnology infrastructure, world-class R&D facilities and proven track record in translational research.  

ITBP and DBT will explore opportunities to undertake joint research projects tailored to suit the various operational challenges of the forces such as a study which is being developed to understand the adaptability of humans to high altitudes and other extreme environmental condition in order to risk stratify personnel on the likelihood of their adaptability in such conditions. Similarly other joint R&D projects can also be developed for faster wound healing, frost bites and other applications as identified by ITBP.

Together, this collaboration paves the way for advancing translational research aimed at developing solutions to pressing challenges of paramilitary forces.

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NKR/PSM/AV

(Release ID: 2150970)