NBIL's Trivima Bioprinter Receives High Praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Amidst great excitement, this month witnessed a gathering of passionate tech enthusiasts. Atal Innovation Mission, in collaboration with Niti Aayog, hosted the grand 25th anniversary of National Technology Week in the vibrant city of New Delhi. With a captivating theme of ‘From School to Startup: Igniting young minds to Innovate,’ this event served as an empowering platform for young scientists and aspiring startup entrepreneurs from all corners of the nation. Showcasing their exceptional talents and groundbreaking products across various domains, ranging from sustainability and textile to water purifying systems, agrotech solutions and bioprinting, they left no stone unturned.
The event also shone a spotlight on the recent advancements achieved by 12 prominent ministries, including the Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Biotechnology, and the Indian Space Research Organisation, among others. These remarkable showcases symbolized India’s unwavering commitment to technological progress and innovation.
The air was bustling with excitement as everyone awaited the entry of the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, who was inaugurating the event. Amongst the bustle and the chaos sat the Trivima Mini Bioprinter, a compact bioprinter designed for effortless usability and exceptional portability. With precision and efficiency, this cutting-edge bioprinter readies itself to embark on a complex printing endeavor. As the Prime Minister made his entrance into Hall 5 of Pragati Maidan, along with Dr. Chintan Vaishnav, the mission director of Atal Innovation Mission, Trivima sat quietly performing a 40-layer print, showcasing an intricate lumen structure.
After engaging with students from Atal Tinkering Labs and entrepreneurs representing the textile industry, the Prime Minister stopped at our NBIL booth. With unwavering attention directed towards the intricate printing process of Trivima, the Prime Minister avidly absorbed the insights shared by NBIL CEO Piyush Padmanabhan, as he delved into the realm of bioprinting. In his address, he emphasised the bioprinter’s status as a homegrown marvel, with an impressive 91% of its components being sourced and manufactured within India.
Trivima is currently being used by top researchers and institutes in the country for various bioprinting applications ranging from creating implantable cornea and lab-based meat to recreating leather. He also pointed out how the Trivima machine being showcased was currently used at the Stem Cell Facility, AIIMS Delhi as a collaborative effort to study stem cells and their implementations. PM Modi, paying close attention to the Trivima, asked if the machine could help the thousands of people suffering from Sickle Cell Anemia.
Sickle Cell Anemia is a genetic disorder affecting the shape of the Red Blood Cells that transport oxygen to different body parts. The shape, which is usually round and flexible, becomes sickle-shaped (crescent moon shaped) and rigid, affecting their movement through the blood vessels. This leads to lack of oxygen and shortage of RBCs causing anemia and frequency of infections among other symptoms.
Piyush pointed out how bioprinting can assist in disease modeling applications that can help study the disease in more detail. This can further lead to the creation of a treatment modality in the future.
The PM was thoroughly impressed with the technology and recognized its implications in advancing the country’s future of medicine and healthcare.
A proud moment for the entire team of NBIL to have been given an opportunity to showcase our technology to the Prime Minister of India, together working towards fulfilling his mission of creating an Atmanirbhar Bharat. The event highlighted the country’s need to foster innovation and entrepreneurship through government initiatives such as Startup India, Standup India and Make In India.
With the splendid commencement of Next Big Innovation Labs’ 7th anniversary festivities, our focus now turns to the future, driven by a relentless pursuit of technological excellence. Thus, by joining forces with renowned institutions and brilliant minds, we aim to forge groundbreaking pathways in Bioprinting.