Raised 3 questions in Lok Sabha today, for which the Government responded with the following:
тАв Biosafety Labs & Epidemic Preparedness: India has strengthened its network with 167 VRDLs, including 11 BSL-3 labs, with тВ╣176.55 cr allocated. Under PM-ABHIM, BSL-4 labs (Nagpur, Dibrugarh) and multiple BSL-3 labs are being developed, including one at Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh. In AP, 2 State-level and 7 Medical College labs have been approved. These labs support diagnostics, surveillance and research on emerging diseases like Nipah, Monkeypox, Dengue and COVID-19.
тАв Health Emergency Preparedness & Response (HEPR) Trust Fund: With a USD 1 million allocation (2025тАУ26) under World Bank assistance, the fund supports innovation through ICMRтАФfocusing on research translation (MedTech Mitra), bio-repositories and scientific capacity building. Complementing this, 9 VRDL labs in Andhra Pradesh are strengthening disease surveillance and response systems.
тАв Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI): The programme has covered 5.46 crore children and 1.32 crore women across 12 phases. The U-WIN digital platform enables real-time tracking, session planning and beneficiary follow-ups. IndiaтАЩs growing self-reliance in vaccines and institutions like the National Institute of One Health (Nagpur) are further strengthening immunisation and zoonotic disease surveillance.