The state government is set to introduce a postgraduate course in medical biotechnology at the School of Tropical Medicine (STM).

The department of biochemistry and medical biotechnology of STM, which is affiliated to the West Bengal University of Health Sciences, plans to start the course in mid-November.

“The course, the first of its kind in the state, will boost medical education in West Bengal, which is one of the objectives of the government,” said Jayasree Mitra, the director of medical education.

Medical biotechnology is a stream of biotechnology that deals with stem cell research, cancer treatment and development of instruments and drugs.

Initially, 10 seats will be on offer for the two-year programme. “We are flooded with applications from students of not only educational institutions in Calcutta but also other cities,” said an STM official.

Samaresh Chaudhury, the head of the department of biochemistry and medical biotechnology at STM, said: “It is a high-quality programme. We are happy to launch it.”

Private institutions in other states charge between Rs 3 lakh to Rs 6 lakh a year for similar courses. The course fee at STM will be around Rs 30,000 a year.

Both medical and non-medical students can enrol for the programme.

A non-medical applicant needs to be a B.Sc (honours) graduate or a B.Tech in life sciences from a recognised university/institution with more than 55 per cent marks.

The selection will be through an admission test, to be conducted by the health sciences university.

“After the government’s nod to the project, a three-member team from the university visited our department in June, inspected our infrastructure and interacted with the faculty. The team submitted a report. The approval from the university followed soon after,” said the STM official.

He claimed that a gamut of opportunities in the professional and academic world would open before those who complete the course.

“We have framed our syllabus in such a way that outgoing students will be considered assets in institutes of medical research and development, national and international pharmaceutical companies and medical instrument-manufacturing units. We are also planning to organise campus placements for the students,” said Chaudhury.