Biotechnology Career Advancement And Re-orientation (BioCARe) Programme For Women Scientists

Biotechnology Career Advancement and Re-orientation (BioCARe) Programme, a special scheme of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science & Technology, the government of India aims to enhance the participation of women scientists in India towards research in Biotechnology and allied area. The program is mainly for the career development of unemployed female scientists for whom it will be the first “sanctioned” extramural research funding. Through this endeavor of the Department, a concerted effort would be made to give women scientists a strong foothold into the scientific profession, to help them re-enter the mainstream, and to provide a launch pad for further forays into the field of science and technology. Accordingly, applications are invited from Indian female scientists to apply to the program. On the behalf of Department of Biotechnology, this program is being managed by the Processing and Management Unit (PMU) established at International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi.

Date of Commencement of Project & its Duration

1. The duration of the project is of three (3) years and is specified in the sanction order.
2. The project starting date will be effective from the date on which the candidate joins the Institution but within 45 days from the date of issuance of the sanction order. The date of receipt of the grant should be intimated by the Institution authorities/Mentor and Nodal officer to this Department. It will, in no case be later than 15 days after the receipt of the grant by the Institute.
3. The successful candidates have to join their host institution within 45 days from the date of issuance of the sanction order, or else it would be withdrawn.

Project Cost & Fellowship to Project Investigator

Project Cost & Fellowship: Based on the applicant's qualifying degree, the budget support is provided in the following two categories:
Category: Category-I
Qualifying Degree: Ph.D. in any discipline of Life Sciences or allied areas or interdisciplinary sciences /MD/MDS/M.V.Sc.
Research Grant: Restricted up to ₹ 60,00,000 (includes consolidated Fellowship of ₹ 68,000/month).
Category: Category-II
Qualifying Degree: M.Tech. in Biotechnology or allied areas / MPharma/ equivalent degree.
Research Grant: Restricted up to ₹ 40,00,000 (Includes consolidated Fellowship of ₹ 50,000/month).

Eligible Areas for Financial Support

1. Animal and Marine Biotechnology or allied areas.
2. Bioengineering and Biomaterials or allied areas.
3. Medical Biotechnology or allied areas.
4. Environmental Biotechnology and Bioenergy or allied areas.
5. Plant and Agriculture Biotechnology or allied areas.
   1. Employment:
   a) Candidates in regular or permanent employment are not eligible to apply for BioCARe.
   b) Women scientists who are working in any temporary positions in research or academics may apply for the scheme but they have to leave their earlier assignment if a project is approved for them under BioCARe program.
   c) Candidates who have already received any extramural funding as Principal Investigator for research from any Govt. Funding Agency/Government-supported funding agency is not eligible to apply under this program as it should be their first sanctioned and independent project for research.
   2. Age:
   The woman scientist should be upto/below 45 years, as of the last date of the submission of the application.
   3. Educational Qualification:
   a) Category-I: Women Scientists who have completed a Ph.D. in any discipline of Life Sciences or allied areas/interdisciplinary sciences/MD/MDS/ M.V.Sc.
   b) Category-II: Women Scientists who have completed M.Tech in Biotechnology or in allied areas/MPharma/ -Degree holders
   NOTE: Candidates who are registered in Ph.D. and receiving any fellowships are not eligible to apply.

For the Mentor

1. She/he should be a permanent employee at the Host Institute and should not be a spouse or relative of the applicant.
2. He/She will be the person in whose laboratory & under whose supervision the applicant intends to carry out the project under the BioCARe program.
3. The proposal submitted under the BioCARe scheme should be the applicant’s initiative and should not be an extension of the Mentor’s research.
4. The proposed research is expected to complement and benefit from the Mentor’s research interests and expertise.
5. The Mentor must have at least 5 years of service remaining.
6. The Mentor must guarantee the applicant access to laboratory space and resources required for the project, and provide relevant scientific guidance and career advice for the tenure of the project.
7. The Mentor must have at least three ongoing and/or four successfully completed extramural research projects in the last five years, funded by government/government-supported agencies as PI.

For the Institution

1. An applicant can submit his application for a research grant from a government-supported/government funded (such as central universities, state universities, autonomous institutions, Private Universities/Institutes etc.) or an Indian “non-profit” Institution.
2. The Institution will be required to adhere to the guidelines & conditions outlined by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India.

1. Candidates who are registered in Ph.D. and receiving any fellowships are not eligible to apply

Online

Advertisement for Inviting Applications

The scheme of BioCARe program will be advertised on PMU and the Department of Biotechnology website. The desirous candidates are required to apply through the link created on the website or as specified. Applications received through any other mode/channel will not be considered and are liable to be rejected. The process requires one full application with two parts. Part A requires General Information of the Applicant and Part B requires details related to the research proposal, budget, and regulatory details (see Annexure).

Selection Process

a) The eligible applications will be screened by an Expert Committee constituted by the Department for shortlisting based on the following parameters:

1. Novelty
2. Scientific merit
3. Experience and the qualification of the Applicant as well as Mentor
4. Publications record
5. The infrastructure of the Host Institution b) Shortlisted applicants will be required to submit their full proposal which will be peer-reviewed and based on the reviews, the selected ones will have to present their research proposal to the Expert Committee.
   c) Once the project is technically approved, a formal sanction order will be issued as per the recommendations of the Expert Committee (EC). The total cost of the project will be based on the latest quotation(s) of equipment(s) approved under the project and other relevant documents related to consumables etc. submitted by the applicant.

Post-Selection Instructions for the Candidates

1. Applicants cannot use this program to pursue their Ph.D./higher studies.
2. Applicants with an MSc degree or those pursuing a PhD/ MTech/ MPharma/ MVSc/ MD/ MDS/equivalent are not eligible to apply.
3. The applicant must have been successfully awarded Ph.D./ MTech/ MPharma/ MVSc/ MD/ MDS/equivalent degree before applying.
4. The applicants currently availing of any postdoctoral or contractual fellowship have to resign from the same before accepting the project under BioCARe program.
5. The applicant cannot hold another Fellowship/Grant/Award that provides them salary/stipend/emoluments/personal support concurrently with BioCARe project.
6. The applicants holding or had availed any funding under Women specific scheme of DST or any other funding agency are also not eligible to apply.
7. The candidates are required to spend 100% of their research time on the BioCARe project. The research time should be corroborated by the Host Institution at the time of submission of annual technical and financial reports.
8. In case the applicant joins any regular employment during the tenure of the BioCARe project, then she will not receive any fellowship or honorarium from the BioCARe project.
9. It will be mandatory for the applicant to get a Co-PI nominated from the Institute/Organisation where she intends to join and work as a regular employee. All the necessary documents will be required to be submitted again for the same.
10. The applicants must indicate the number of years of experience post-qualifying degree (i.e. PhD/MTech/MVSc/MD/MDS/MPharma) in the application form and will be required to provide documents along with the application.
11. The candidates are required to clearly indicate any non-research career break and submit evidence along with the application form.