<h3>Overview</h3> <p>The <span class="key-term" data-definition="Delhi High Court — The apex judicial body for the National Capital Territory of Delhi, whose judgments shape legal precedents on health, ethics and personal liberty (GS4: Ethics)">Delhi High Court</span> has granted permission to extract and cryopreserve the sperm of an Indian Army soldier in a persistent vegetative state, enabling his wife to pursue <span class="key-term" data-definition="In vitro fertilisation (IVF) — Assisted reproductive technology that fertilises eggs outside the body and transfers embryos back, a growing health‑policy issue in India (GS3: Health)">IVF</span> treatment. The same week, the Union Budget 2026‑27 unveiled <span class="key-term" data-definition="Biopharma SHAKTI — A five‑year, ₹10,000 crore programme aimed at building India’s biopharma infrastructure, establishing new NIPER institutes and a network of clinical‑trial sites (GS3: Economy)">Biopharma SHAKTI</span>, signalling a strategic push to position India as a global hub for <span class="key-term" data-definition="biologics — Large‑molecule therapeutics such as monoclonal antibodies, vaccines and insulin, derived from living cells and regulated differently from small‑molecule drugs (GS3: Health)">biologics</span>.</p> <h3>Key Developments</h3> <ul> <li>Delhi High Court authorises sperm extraction and cryopreservation for a soldier in a vegetative state, upholding reproductive rights and medical ethics.</li> <li>Union Budget allocates ₹10,000 crore to the <span class="key-term" data-definition="Biopharma SHAKTI — A five‑year, ₹10,000 crore programme aimed at building India’s biopharma infrastructure, establishing new NIPER institutes and a network of clinical‑trial sites (GS3: Economy)">Biopharma SHAKTI</span> programme, creating three new National Institutes for Pharmaceuticals Education and Research (<span class="key-term" data-definition="NIPER — National Institutes for Pharmaceuticals Education and Research, premier centres for drug‑discovery and biomanufacturing training (GS3: Economy)">NIPER</span>) and 1,000 accredited clinical‑trial sites.</li> <li>January 2026 – Biologics × 3DCC Summit merges biopharma product‑development and 3‑D cell‑culture conferences, highlighting advances in monoclonal antibodies, cell‑ and gene‑therapy platforms.</li> <li>Emphasis on production platforms: CHO (Chinese Hamster Ovary) cell lines for glycosylated therapeutics such as anti‑Müllerian hormone (AMH) assays used in IVF.</li> </ul> <h3>Important Facts</h3> <p>• <span class="key-term" data-definition="monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) — Laboratory‑produced antibodies that target specific antigens, constituting ~54 % of the global biologics market (GS3: Health)">Monoclonal antibodies</span> remain the largest segment of biologics, driving demand for advanced cell‑culture facilities.<br> • Glycosylation – the addition of sugar moieties to proteins – is essential for the activity of many therapeutic proteins; bacter