Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, April 5: The state government will soon set up a laboratory with state-of-the-art facilities at the Unit IV Government Hospital in the city in a move aimed at intensifying research and testing facilities for complex diseases.
“Various tests, including virology, cellular pathology, bacteriology and water analysis will be done here. The lab will work as a referral centre and will ease the burden on the Regional Medical Research Centre here,” said Kailash Das, director of the public health department.
The proposed laboratory will be the third of its kind in India after the ones in Pune and Mysore. A team of experts from the state will visit these two laboratories and prepare a roadmap for the project in state.
The health department has prepared blueprint for the project and has identified 15,000 square feet of area inside Unit IV Government Hospital here for the laboratory for which a six-storied building is proposed to be built. The tender for the project will be invited nationally.
In first phase, a food testing lab will be set up, with the other facilities being introduced subsequently.
“Earlier, we were depending highly on RMRC and the virology lab at Pune which was taking a lot of time. The proposed lab here will definitely benefit of the people. The burden on RMRC will also reduce with the establishment of the lab,” said Das.
There are also proposals to upgrade the laboratories at the district level where testing facilities for dengue, malaria, hepatitis B and other deadly diseases will be introduced.
Modern equipment will be made available at those laboratories for the testing. As much as Rs 9 crore has been granted for the proposed upgrade.