India to get multiple new Virus Research and Diagnostic Labs: Health Ministry

GMCs and Central Research Institutes in India are expected to get 42 new Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) from 2021-22 to 2025-26, said Dr Bharti Pravin Pawar, Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, in the Lok Sabha.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is expected to set up nearly 42 new Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) in the Government Medical Colleges and Central Research Institutes across India as confirmed by Dr Bharti Pravin Pawar in Lok Sabha.

She confirmed this while replying to a question raised by Dr Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament, on the virology and epidemiology courses, research happening in India and the Central government's plan in virology education and research in future.

Dr Bharti recently said in the Lok Sabha, “42 new VRDLs are proposed to be set up in the Government Medical Colleges and Central Research Institutes across the country during the 15th Finance Commission period from 2021-22 to 2025-26 under the Department of Health Research’s Scheme.”

The Government of India has set up 124 VRDLs so far in GMCs and Central research institutes under the Department of Health Research’s Scheme for ‘Setting up of a nation-wide network of laboratories for managing epidemics and natural calamities.' Out of these 78 were set up during the last five years.

She said, apart from these, nine institutes or universities including Sree Chitra Thirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), CMC, Vellore, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Utkal University Bhubaneswar, and Manipal Academy of Higher Education are offering epidemiology and virology courses. ICMR is conducting PhD programmes in virology and epidemiology affiliated with local universities.

Moreover, 14 ICMR institutes and three Universities - Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, and Manipal and SVU College of Sciences, Tirupati are conducting epidemiological and virology research. 

National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) had started the India Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS), a two-year competency-based training programme in 2012 for strengthening epidemiology training of frontline health workers in the state, central and local municipal health departments.

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