DBT COVID19 testing facility – ICMR Approves DBT Institute For Testing
For COVID-19 testing in the Faridabad region, the ICMR has approved the bioassay laboratory of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), an institute under the Department of Biotechnology, to function the ESIC Medical College and Hospital, Faridabad’s extended diagnostic facility. In the Faridabad region, this will be the only and the first COVID-19 testing facility.
At the ESI hospital, the team at the bioassay laboratory is allowed to train manpower and build capacity for COVID-19 testing as a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the two institutes. ESIC Medical College and Hospital, Faridabad, is a premier medical institution under the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment while THSTI is funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) in the Union Ministry of Science and Technology.
Under the DBT-funded Translational Research Program of THSTI, DBT- THSTI’s bioassay laboratory was established. This lab was set up for the clinical development of biologicals and vaccines. For vaccine development and testing, it will be applying for accreditation by National Accreditation Board for testing and calibration Laboratories (NABL) and is intended to meet the global standards in Good Clinical Laboratory Practice (GCLP
).After the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) decision to take on an expansion process to start new testing facilities involving government laboratories, which were not under ICMR, this MoU was signed. This includes laboratories of government-funded medical colleges, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, and DBT.
The cases of coronavirus in India have been increasing and as of April 13, it stands at 9, 252 confirmed cases. The number of active cases stands at 7,824 with over 1,096 recovered cases. The death toll of COVID-19 in India stands at 332 deaths. The highest number of cases are reported in Maharashtra and Delhi and Tamil Nadu have the second highest and third highest number of cases confirmed respectively.
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DBT COVID19 testing facility
