Our Bureau

Chennai , Sept. 17

ITALIAN industries will make their presence felt in the bio-medical sector in India in the near future. Italian and Indian companies together plan to get into the manufacture of safety syringes, with four factories likely to be set up in India.

Mr Algeo Marcozzi, President of Piceno Promozine, a special agency of the Italian Chamber of Commerce to develop the international activities of the Ascoli Piceno area in Italy, mentioned a joint venture project between Italian and Indian industrialists in the bio-medical sector.

Mr Marcozzi said, "The project will initially target the production of safety syringes, and then move into other areas of health management."

Four Italian companies and seven or eight Indian companies have shown interest in the project. "Initially, four factories are being set up, and the first batch of a 100 million syringes will be manufactured," said Mr Marcozzi at a press conference here on Saturday. He said India had the manpower and the Italian companies would bring in the technology and capital to jointly work in the bio-medical sector.

Italy is in a position to take up such projects because it has scientists all over the world working on projects related to contamination and transmission of viruses, said Mr Renzo Mario Die Santi, Director, Piceno Promozine. Eventually, the joint ventures will concentrate on all medical safety devices, he added.

"The first priority will be the bio-medical sector," said Mr Ranga Ramanujam Alagia Manavalan, India Consultant, Piceno Promzione.

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