New Delhi, Jan 23 (IANS): Public funding in India in the field of research and development for neglected diseases has increased significantly by Rs 135 crore since 2009, says a new report.

The report conducted by G-Finder a project that tracks and reports on global investments into research and development (R&D) for neglected diseases which was released on Wednesday suggested that funding from Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) increased by Rs 147 crore.

"In 2017, India was the fourth-largest funder by absolute funding and proportion of GDP and accounted for almost three-quarters (Rs 492 crore) of the public funding from low income and middle income countries," the report stated.

The report also suggested that ICMR is one of the four largest global TB R&D funders for the first time ever, with an increase of Rs 39 crore in investment.

ICMR has also increased its funding for research and development for dengue and leptospirosis by Rs 6.5 crore and Rs 9.1 crore respectively.

Globally, the money invested in research and development has reached USD 3.5 billion, an increase by 7 per cent from the previous year.

The largest funder, as per the report is the US government, which through its National Institutes of Health provided 39 per cent of the total.