C-CAMP and UK’s Global AMR Innovation Fund announces new research call

New Delhi: The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) in India has announced a new research call, funded through the UK’s Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF), to identify and develop solutions that address the rising burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the environment.

The initiative focuses on delivering contextual solutions for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that are globally relevant and scalable. Up to £170,000 or INR 2 Crore will be awarded per startup, in addition to 360-degree ecosystem support including on-field testing and validation studies. 

The C-CAMP Programme on AMR in the Environment (2025–26), Call #2, is looking for innovations that aim to address the unmet needs of AMR in the environment, across the three areas:

1. Detection: Technologies for the detection of resistant microbes and traces of antimicrobials in environmental samples. 

2. Prevention: Technologies for the prevention of the spread of AMR in the environment through innovative strategies and technologies.

3. Treatment: Treatment of soil, water (for domestic, farm, and allied use), air or other sources to eliminate the risk of contamination with resistant pathogens and antibiotic traces in the environment. This includes identifying markers and indicators to assess the treatment efficiency of environmental samples for continuous or discrete monitoring.

The call aims to foster innovative thinking and problem-solving to identify and nurture state-of-the-art solutions and technologies that address the unmet needs of AMR in the environment, specifically for LMICs, where the burden is highest. It aims to tackle the escalating threat posed by the emergence, spread, and transmission of AMR in the environment, including its intersection with climate change, pollution, and improper waste management, among others. 

The C-CAMP Programme on AMR in the Environment (2025–26), Call #2 will accept solutions from India, as well as from non-Indian innovators with an Indian partner or Indian subsidiary, to encourage collaboration and generate context-specific innovations that can be scaled globally. 

Welcoming the announcement of the new research call developed and led by C-CAMP, Dr. Taslimarif Saiyed, Director-CEO, C-CAMP said: “C-CAMP has been fostering innovations addressing AMR across human health, agriculture including animal health, and environment since the last decade or more.  We have just concluded our first C-CAMP GAMRIF Challenge that focused exclusively on AMR in the environment, where we built an exciting cohort of nine technologies relevant to those in LMICs both in India and beyond. With this latest call, we aim to identify our second cohort and further strengthen the global pipeline of demonstrated, validated and commercially proven technologies. The effort is to create a robust body of deployable solutions to be tapped into anywhere in the world, particularly in LMICs, to stem AMR in the environment. We are looking forward to working with GAMRIF with the guidance of the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to the Govt. of India.”

Successful innovators will receive funding support of up to £170,000 GBP (approximately INR 2 Crores), along with mentoring and networking opportunities to advance the AMR-focused solutions in the environment and accelerate their translation into viable products. This comprehensive ecosystem support, spanning the entire value chain from idea-to-technology, is hoped to enable innovators to accelerate the global pipeline of solutions to tackle the AMR crisis.  

Prof. Ajay K. Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Govt. of India, welcomed the partnership saying: “Antimicrobial resistance in the environment is a serious issue percolating to our water bodies, air and soil through years of unidentified and unchecked leakage and harbouring of AMR bacterial genes in our agriculture, industry and healthcare systems. The GAMRIF C-CAMP collaboration is tackling this problem through innovation, deployment of solutions and evidence-based steps for all LMICs such as India and others which are at the epicentre of the global AMR emergency. C-CAMP has a strong and proven track record of supporting some global changemakers in AMR in therapeutics, preventives and diagnostics. I am excited to see the result of this partnership for the global AMR innovation landscape.”