Sulthan Bathery: Manipal Centre for Virus Research (MCVR), Manipal University in collaboration with Health Services, Government of Kerala started an Infectious Disease Laboratory in the Taluk Hospital of Sulthan Bathery on last Sunday. Kerala state Health Minister K K Shylaja Teacher inaugurated the laboratory in the presence of T Ushakumari, District Panchayat President and Dr G Arun Kumar, HOD, MCVR.

While thanking MCVR for taking the initiative to start a laboratory, the Health Minister said, “Sultan Bathery is the tri-junction for the states of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It also lies along the forest area which makes the establishment of the laboratory all the more important.”

Dr H Vinod Bhat, Vice Chancellor, Manipal University said, “Manipal University has been previously involved in Public-Private partnerships in the Public Health domain and this laboratory is another feather in its cap.” The laboratory which is the first of its kind in Wayanad District has been built at a cost of Rs 1 crore. Initiated to strengthen the disease detection and surveillance capacity of the district health officials, this will in turn implement evidence based precision public health response.

“Our laboratory will help detect outbreaks early which will lead to better public health response. MCVR will run the laboratory in collaboration with the district surveillance officers, said Dr G Arun Kumar. The state-of-the-art laboratory is equipped to diagnose most important public health diseases such as Dengue, Leptospirosis, Scrub Typhus, Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD), Bacillary dysentery, Cholera, Diphtheria and others.