30 July : In a boost to the country’s health infrastructure, the Govt on Thursday decided to upgrade the premier National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) to enhance its services and renamed it as the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
The institute in its new ‘avatar’ would play a more meaningful role in the development of public health policy frame work, conducting risk factor surveys for non-communicable diseases and developing human resource in public health.
It will also help in developing network of public health institutions and improving diagnostic capabilities for emerging and re-emerging infections.
The NCDC will modernise research for disease control, develop Epidemic Intelligence Services (EIS) for prompt response to disease outbreaks and develop disease outbreak forecasting models.
Making the announcement at the centenary celebrations of the NICD here today, Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said, “a budgetary allocation of Rs 510 crore has been earmarked in the 11th Five Year Plan period for upgradation of infrastructure, modernisation of equipments and augmenting the manpower of the institute”.
“In-principle approval of the Planning Commission has already been obtained and an agency has been hired to prepare the Detailed Project Report (DPR) quickly,” he said adding that he was optimistic that in the coming years a well-equipped world class laboratory and communication system would be present in this campus.
Azad said apart from communicable diseases, non-Communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, heart attacks, cancers are also increasing at an alarming rate, which have further compounded the problem.
Coupled with this, rapid urbanization, industrialization, climate change, malnutrition and illiteracy are also going to be the major challenges in the future, he said.
The institute will help in addressing these issues, he added.
Minister of State for Health Dinesh Trivedi lauded the untiring efforts of the institute in keeping fast-spreading diseases under control.
He said that increasing population and new diseases have made upgradation of the Institute a very important step.