The Hubli Express

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, founder of Biocon, would approve. For, Amit Kumar Vernekar said no to a job offer to chase his dream of nurturing his start-up, Biosyl. It’s another matter that the job offer came from Biocon itself!

Vernekar is aided by classmate Sarah Pearl D’Souza in the venture, who, too, had a choice of joining Navya Biologicals but decided to co-found Biosyl with Vernekar. The two 22-year-olds from Hubli in Karnataka fully understand the risks involved, but are confident they have a winner on their hands.

This adventurous streak is not the norm in Hubli, where every graduate dreams of either going to the US or land a good job in a big city in India. There is not much to do in Hubli as few opportunities exist here, but Vernekar and

D’Souza say they are staying put and will put the town on the world map with Biosyl.

The object of their dreams is an anaerobic chamber, which is set for commercial launch after a development period of over two years. The concept took shape on the campus of BV Bhoomaraddi College of Engineering and Technology in Hubli. The supportive college offered basic research facilities and helped incubate the company. Funding of around R1.5 lakh from their parents gave the project the financial push.

Biosyl was born

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