Marine and Space Biotechnology
What it means
- Marine biotechnology
- Use of marine organisms (algae, microbes, seaweed)
- Development of bio-compounds, enzymes, biomaterials, food and medicines
- Space biotechnology
- Study of biological systems in microgravity and radiation
- Supports human health, food production, and life-support in space
Why it matters for India
- Long coastline of about 11,000 km and large Exclusive Economic Zone
- Rich marine biodiversity but low share in global marine bio-outputs
- Reduces pressure on land, freshwater, and agriculture
- Supports long-duration space missions and human spaceflight
India’s current status
- Marine biomass (seaweed) production around 70,000 tonnes annually
- Imports seaweed-based products like agar, alginates, carrageenan
- Efforts underway under
- Blue Economy
- Deep Ocean Mission
- BioE3 Policy (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment and Employment)
- ISRO’s microgravity experiments on microbes, algae, life-support systems
