Our Correspondent
Kohima, June 10 (EMN): The construction of bio-safety level-2 (BSL-2) laboratory at Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Research (CIHSR) in Dimapur may take another two more days to complete, according to a Health official.
“The target set to complete the construction of BSL-2 was around June 10. However, because of some panelling issues, the completion will take another one or two more days,” said Kesonyu Yhome, Secretary of Health and Family Welfare.
As per the feedback from the director of CIHSR, Yhome said that sending approvals to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for BSL-2 in Dimapur might be able to commence from June 13 to 14. He iterated that the ICMR approval is “not in our hand”.
“But it may take seven to eight days if there is no other serious observation from the ICMR. If everything goes well, then we are looking at a timeline with ICMR approval and all formalities can be completed maybe seven to eight days after the completion of the lab,” he said.
As for the team, he said that the CIHSR has qualified people to handle the BSL-2. There will be some short listing and a procedure for actual recruitment, which will take place in the next few days. The director of CIHSR will be the overall in-charge as far as the new laboratory is concerned, Yhome added.
When asked about the number of research scientists to be stationed at the BSL-2, the secretary said two research scientists are “good enough” to begin with, as the lab has one PCR machine for now. “As we go along, we can have more people recruited,” he said.
The principal director of Health and Family Welfare also informed while briefing the Covid-19 status in the state on Wednesday that the testing capacity of the BSL 3 lab in Kohima was increasing steadily and about 90% work of the BSL-2 lab in Dimapur has been completed.
He went on to inform that the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has dispatched 45 ventilators for Nagaland and are expected to arrive in the state soon.
Yhome also informed that ‘civil works’ have started on the BSL-2 in Tuensang.
“The engineer and firm have already visited on June 1. But the actual material for the laboratory is yet to arrive and that will reach a little later,” he said.
He informed that they would constitute a committee that will solely look after the setting up of the BSL-2 in Tuensang. “Once the committee is set up and the government approves, they will be taking up the whole matter on a war footing,” he added.
On this, Principal Director of Health and Family Welfare also apprised at an event that “work for the BSL-2 lab in Tuensang is in progress and within this month all the districts in Nagaland will have testing facilities”.
Close on the heels of ultimatum being served to the minister for Health and Family Welfare by various civil societies from Tuensang, a TrueNat machine arrived the district on Wednesday evening and two more are said to arrive soon, it was informed.
Further, the chief medical officer of Tuensang, Dr. I Moatemjen, in a notice, informed that eight people – four laboratory technicians and four for sample collection – have been recruited for the district and they will undergo training on June 11.