Latest news with #PradhanMantriAyushmanBharatHealthInfrastructureMission
Mint
13-07-2025
- Health
- Mint
Govt plans to to open new quarantine centres at four international entry points
New Delhi: The government plans to set up quarantine centres at three international border points—Amritsar, Guwahati and Petrapole—alongside Bhubaneswar in order to check the cross-border movement of potential carriers of infectious diseases. These designated centres are supported under the government's Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM). PM-ABHIMis considered the largest pan-India scheme for strengthening the healthcare infrastructure with an outlay of ₹ 64,180 crore. One of the key components of PM-ABHIM is to operationalize new public health units and strengthen existing ones at points of entry like airports, seaports, and land crossings. The quarantine centres are designed to separate and restrict the movement of individuals who have been exposed to an infectious disease, like Covid-19, but are not yet showing symptoms. These centres aim to prevent the transmission of the disease to others in the country. Previously, these centres were earmarked for Kannur (Kerala), Bhogapuram (Andhra Pradesh), Chennai (Tamil Nadu), and Kolkata (West Bengal).According to documents reviewed by Mint, this plan comes as the Ministry of Civil Aviation will now build quarantine centres from its budget at Kannur and Bhogapuram airports. The centres at Chennai and Kolkata airports will be built by the Airport Authority of India (AAI) as part of its airport expansion plans. This means the money previously planned for these four locations won't be needed, freeing up those funds. 'The new locations are important points of entry and connectivity: Amritsar serves as a major land route to Pakistan and a cultural hub; Guwahati is the gateway to the Northeast with extensive regional connections; Bhubaneshwar is a significant air entry point in eastern India; and Petrapole is India's largest land port facilitating substantial cross-border movement with Bangladesh,' an official familiar with the matter said. This strategic decision was discussed and ratified in the Mission Steering Group meeting of the National Health Mission held recently. 'This proactive approach ensures efficient use of resources and better preparedness for public health emergencies at critical points of entry across the nation,' the official said while emphasizing that these help in containing disease transmission, monitoring and early detection, managing high risk individuals, reducing burden on hospitals, emergency preparedness and providing specialized care and support. 'Even a single case of a novel virus, if unchecked at entry, could spark widespread community transmission and overwhelm local hospitals. Quarantine centres serve as a barrier, potentially preventing such outbreaks before they could even start,' Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, public health expert and Past President, Indian Medical Association (IMA), Cochin. Queries sent to the health ministry spokesperson remained unanswered.
Time of India
07-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
UT admn finalises plan for critical care hospital in Manimajra
Chandigarh: After deciding against taking MC's land for the ambitious project of constructing a 50-bedded critical care hospital in Manimajra, the UT administration finally finalised a 2.01-acre plot for the first of its kind project. Construction plan of the project, which will come up at Pocket Number 14, Manimajra, has been finalised. The engineering department will float the tender to invite bids. The plan is to construct a building with three floors on 1,28,833 square feet covered area. The structure will comprise both the critical care block and the service or sarai block. Since the total plot area is 87,600 square feet, the Chandigarh administration allowed a 1.50 permissible FAR (Floor Area Ratio) for this project. The new critical care hospital will have facilities such as emergency triage, gynaecology emergency, point of care lab, isolation room, ultrasound room, plaster room, duty room, and DU room. It will also have dialysis, isolation ward, therapeutic diet, duty room, staff room, cafeteria, and kitchen. Other facilities will include a 21-bedded ICU/HDU, operation theatre, administrative/office block, X-ray, MRI room, CT scan, and lab. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like One of the Most Successful Investors of All Time, Warren Buffett, Recommends: 5 Books for Turning... Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Click Here Undo The administration has planned a dedicated building for sarai, which will have 84 beds for the public. This building will have chemist shop, tuck shop, cafeteria, kitchen, etc. A basement parking has been planned to prevent issues. A few areas in the basement will also be used for services. The ground, first, second, and third floors of the building will have all the required facilities with modern technologies for treatment of patients. In-depth consultations were held with the UT health department during the planning stage. Each medical aspect related to the project was thoroughly discussed and the floor-wise plan was finalised. The critical care hospital project will be constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM). Since Manimajra is a densely populated area, the project aims at facilitating a large number of people, mainly from Manimajra, Maulijagran, and adjoining areas. Box: Earlier, the Chandigarh administration asked the Municipal Corporation to give its land for the project in Manimajra and take some of the UT's land in the southern sectors in return. However, the MC rejected the land-swap proposal and sought money against the land. Thereafter, the Chandigarh administration earmarked a new plot of land for the project instead of taking MC's land. Since the MC's land is situated adjacent to the Manimajra Civil Hospital, UT previously found the MC's land more suitable for the critical care centre project. However, since the MC refused the swap, the project is now coming up at another location in Manimajra, decided by the Chandigarh administration. Box: Floor-wise plan Accommodation for Critical Care Hospital Basement: Parking and services Ground floor: Registration, emergency triage, gynaecology emergency, LDR, point of care lab, isolation room, ultrasound room, plaster room, duty room, and DU room. First floor: Dialysis, isolation ward, therapeutic diet, duty room, staff room, cafeteria and kitchen Second floor: ICU/HDU, operation theatre, and office Third floor: Administrative/office block, X-ray, MRI room, CT scan, and lab Box: Accommodation for sarai building Ground floor: Chemist shop, tuck shop, cafeteria, kitchen, and services First floor: Rooms (28 beds) Second floor: Rooms (28 beds) Third floor: Rooms (28 beds) Box: Floor-wise area Total plot area: 87,600 square feet (2.01 acres) Permissible ground coverage: 35,040 square feet Permissible floor area ratio (FAR): 1.50 Box: Critical Care Block Covered area on ground floor: 27,972 square feet Covered area on first floor: 27,972 square feet Covered area on second floor: 27,972 square feet Covered Area on Third Floor: 24,549 square feet Total Covered Area: 108,465 square feet Box: Service/Sarai Block Covered Area on Ground Floor: 5,092 square feet Covered Area on First Floor: 5,092 square feet Covered Area on Second Floor: 5,092 square feet Covered Area on Third Floor: 5,092 square feet Total Covered Area: 20,368 square feet Total Covered Area of both Critical Care and Service Blocks: 128,833 square feet MSID:: 122280004 413 |
The Hindu
25-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
ICMR increasing mobile lab capacity to enhance India's outbreak response capabilities
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is in the process of adding to its Mobile BSL-3 (MBSL-3) laboratory capacity to enhance India's outbreak response capabilities, and strengthen public health delivery, especially in remote and inaccessible areas. The country currently has two of these innovative and fully indigenous mobile laboratory facilities operational in Pune and Gorakhpur. 'The MBSL-3 was successfully deployed and operationalised for the first time in response to the Nipah virus outbreak in Kozhikode, Kerala, in September 2023, and again in Malappuram district of Kerala in July 2024. The success in Kerala demonstrates the strategic advantage of such rapidly deployable and sophisticated infrastructure in tackling epidemiological challenges posed by high-risk pathogens. This 'laboratory on wheels' represents a significant advancement in outbreak investigation and public health emergency response in India,'' a senior ICMR official said. Known as RAMBAAN, this first of its kind Rapid Action Mobile BSL-3 laboratory is an essential part of India's plan for an 'Advanced Augmented Network', and a combination of the MBSL-3 with a well-trained diagnostic team will be an asset for dealing with emerging/re-emerging disease outbreak investigations in the country, the official added. The ICMR, in its release issued on Wednesday, said that these units were part of an initiative for diagnostic surge capacity in onsite laboratory services during outbreaks of known and unknown high-risk pathogens. The MBSL-3 laboratory is field-deployable, and was developed in partnership with the industrial company Klenzaids Contamination Controls Private Limited, Mumbai, under the Union Health Ministry's Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission. The MBSL-3 is built on a heavy-duty Bharat Benz vehicle chassis, complaint with BS VI norms, designed to operate at extreme temperatures and altitudes, and bears a maximum load capacity 17 tonnes. It's classified as a Type-IV Rapid Response Mobile Laboratory in the WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network classification. The laboratory is designed to maintain a negative air pressure environment, and is equipped with an advanced heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system with HEPA filters. It also features a double door autoclave and a biological liquid effluent decontamination (BLED) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) fogger system for biological waste management. The MBSL-3 was validated by ICMR-National Institute of Virology, Pune in 2022-2023, including onsite and on-field validation. The MBSL-3 laboratory's work area is divided into four zones — Zone-1 (driver and outer change room); Zone-2 (shower and inner change room); Zone-3 (main laboratory); and Zone-4 (material staging and decontamination area), the ICMR said. Key installations within these zones include biological safety cabinets, an intelligent programmable logic controller system, a dynamic pass box, and an entry-exit shower system with biometric control. The laboratory's power supply can be from direct electric supply or a diesel generator, with an uninterrupted power supply and petrol generators for back up. Communication within the laboratory is facilitated by walkie-talkies, and real-time surveillance through CCTVs. Strict biosafety protocols, BSL-3 practices, and standard operating procedures are followed for specimen handling and processing, including the use of personal protective equipment (coveralls, double gloves, etc.). The deployment of the MBSL-3 laboratory highlights the importance of a comprehensive checklist for the pre-deployment, deployment, and post-deployment phases, covering several aspects, including personnel health, mobilisation logistics, major installation functioning, approvals, equipment checks, and supply management.
The Hindu
19-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
ICMR sets up high performing computing facility to boost genomic surveillance and pandemic preparedness
Working to address limitations faced during the COVID-19 pandemic due to conventional computing infrastructure, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has now introduced its first high-performance computing facility at its National Institute of Virology (NIV) facility in Pune. The acquisition of the state-of-the-art computing cluster, named NAKSHATRA, comes soon after India reported a surge in COVID-19 cases, though the number of active cases have dipped marginally over the last two days. ICMR-NIV Pune director Naveen Kumar noted that several new pathogens and COVID variants are being reported. 'It's essential that we upgrade to stay ahead in enhancing public health research capacity,' he said. Genomic research upgrade Attributing the emergence of novel pathogens to increased globalisation, global warming, and deforestation, Dr. Kumar said that his centre has been doing extensive sequence analysis using multiple strains, which used to take weeks. 'Now with the upgrade we can do the same work in 24 to 48 hours. It has increased the capability of our country for genomic surveillance, which will help us in pandemic preparedness,' he said. The NAKSHATRA facility enables enhanced storage and optimises the pipeline for genomic research, which ensures better viral genomic surveillance capacity and national preparedness for any future pandemic. The facility supports faster analysis of complex genomic data, allowing scientists to detect new disease threats sooner, respond to outbreaks more efficiently, and accelerate AI-driven vaccine and drug development. Central data repository Developed under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PMABHIM), the facility forms the cornerstone of a new project, called the High Performance Computing Next Generation Sequencing Hub. The Pune facility will initially serve five ICMR institutes across the country, acting as a central repository for sequencing data. Sarah Cherian, group leader of the Bioinformatics and Data Management Group and principal investigator of the project, provided a comprehensive overview of the cluster's capabilities and its role in genomic research. She said that the computing cluster is tailored to support complex bioinformatics workflows, including next-generation sequencing, transcriptomics, phylogenetics, metagenomics, and structural bioinformatics. Genomic monitoring impact Already, NIV Pune has played a key role in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic. Previously significant genetic alterations in the virus had triggered the second and third wave and ongoing genomic monitoring and analysis helped in early detection of variants of interest and concern. 'This in turn had helped in paving the way for implementing the booster dose of vaccination for COVID,' the institute noted.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
ICMR-NIV Pune inaugurates High Performance Computing facility to boost genomic research and pandemic preparedness
Pune: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Wednesday marked a significant milestone in advancing India's public health research capabilities with the inauguration of its first High Performance Computing (HPC) facility at the ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. The computing cluster named 'Nakshatra' was officially inaugurated by Dr Rajiv Bahl, Secretary of the Department of Health Research (DHR) and Director General of ICMR, according to an official statement from ICMR. "Developed under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM ABHIM), the HPC facility forms the cornerstone of a new project titled "High Performance Computing Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Hub". The initiative aims to revolutionize how genomic and bioinformatics data are processed, addressing limitations faced during the COVID-19 pandemic due to conventional computing infrastructure," the statement added. Addressing a gathering regarding the inauguration of the computing facility, the Director General of ICMR commended the institute for its timely and strategic step towards ' Viksit Bharat 2047 ' vision by strengthening the country's genomic surveillance and data analysis capacity. He highlighted how enhanced computing resources are crucial in preparing for technology-driven pandemic preparedness and future public health emergencies. Meanwhile, Director of ICMR-NIV, Dr Naveen Kumar, emphasised the critical role the HPC cluster will play in supporting rapid, data-driven responses to outbreaks. Dr Sarah Cherian, Group Leader of the Bioinformatics and Data Management Group and Principal Investigator of the project, provided a comprehensive overview of the cluster's capabilities and its role in genomic research . According to the official statement, the newly commissioned HPC cluster features twelve compute nodes offering a total of 700 cores and 1 petabyte of storage. "The infrastructure is tailored to support complex bioinformatics workflows, including next-generation sequencing (NGS), transcriptomics, phylogenetics, metagenomics, and structural bioinformatics. Initially, the facility will serve five ICMR institutes across the country, acting as a central repository for sequencing data and extending support to Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) soon, making the institute as a critical hub for outbreak investigations and pandemic preparedness, with the potential to accelerate AI-driven drug and vaccine discovery," the statement added. Highlighting the advantages of the HPC facility, ICMR highlighted how it is a "national investment in speed, precision, and preparedness." The statement mentioned, "By enabling faster analysis of complex genomic data, the facility positions India to detect new disease threats sooner, respond to outbreaks more efficiently, and accelerate AI-driven vaccine and drug development."
