Lok Sabha Question No. 5545 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-27
Subject: Biosafety Labs
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Bastipati Nagaraju, Shri Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu

## GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRY OFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH RESEARCH

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5545 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27 TH MARCH, 2026

## BIOSAFETY LABS

## 5545. SHRI BASTIPATI NAGARAJU: SHRI LAVU SRI KRISHNA DEVARAYALU:

Will the Minister of HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) the number of Biosafety Level-3 (BSL-3) and Biosafety Level-4 (BSL-4) laboratories sanctioned and those currently operational in the Country, State-wise and district-wise in Andhra Pradesh;

- (b) whether the Government has allocated and released funds for the establishment of such laboratories and if so, the details thereof, State-wise and year-wise;
- (c) the details of research studies currently being undertaken by such laboratories, State-wise and district-wise in Andhra Pradesh;
- (d) the current status and outcomes of such research studies along with the funds released/utilised for the same since inception, State-wise and year-wise;
- (e) the details of the major viruses being researched and the key advancements achieved through such research in the areas of epidemic preparedness and viral diseases management by such laboratories; and
- (f) whether the Government has taken steps to expand the network of BSL-3 and BSL-4 laboratories in the Country and if so, the details thereof along with the targets proposed and the timeline likely to be taken for the same?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI PRATAPRAO JADHAV)

(a) to (f): Department of Health Research (DHR) has sanctioned 167 Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) under the Central Sector Scheme ' Establishment of a Network of Laboratories for Managing Epidemics and Natural Calamities ' . Out of these, 11 regional level VRDLs are Bio-Safety Level-3 (BSL-3) laboratories. Their details are given in Annexure. Under the scheme Rs. 176.55 Crore has been allocated for regional VRDL labs since inception. All these labs are reporting diagnosis on the NIE portal. In Andhra Pradesh two State level and seven Medical college level labs have been approved.

Under the Pradhan Mantri- Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) scheme, two BSL-4 Laboratories at National Institute of One Health (NIOH) Nagpur (Maharashtra) and ICMR-NIV East Zone at Dibrugarh (Assam) have been approved. In addition, BSL-3 Laboratories have been approved for Zonal NIVs at Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir), Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) and Bengaluru (Karnataka), NIOH Nagpur (Maharashtra) and National Institute of Translational Virology and AIDS Research (ICMR-NITVAR) Pune (Maharashtra). Besides, 05 VRDLs have been inducted for upgradation to Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) laboratories.

National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has informed that under the PM-ABHIM scheme, a network of specialized 10 BSL-3 laboratories has been approved for it. These also include one BSL3 at NCDC Branch, Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh. Under the scheme, Rupees 30 Crore has been allocated for each BSL-3 lab of NCDC.

The state-wise details of BSL-3 Labs in VRDL, ICMR, NCDC and Department of Biotechnology (DBT) networks are given in Annexure.

These laboratories undertake research, diagnostic and surveillance activities for viral and other infectious diseases of public health importance. In addition, they participate in operational research, outbreak investigations, and validation of diagnostic assays. ICMR has informed that it has supported development of IgG ELISA diagnostic kits for Chandipura virus, Rapid LAMP assay for Monkeypox virus, A colorimetric isothermal (RT-LAMP) assay for Nipah virus, Pan-DENV molecular point-of-care assay for all dengue serotypes, CRISPR/Cas-based isothermal assays for dengue and chikungunya and Multiplex RT-PCR for Enteric Viruses among others. DBT has informed that in these labs research has been undertaken on research and development work on transboundary animal diseases; zoonotic diseases; next generation universal influenza vaccines and Mycobacterium tuberculosis using Non-Human Primates (Rhesus Monkeys) and mice experimental models; SARS-CoV2; Dengue virus and Chikungunya virus.

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## ANNEXURE

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (f) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5545 FOR 27.03.2026 REGARDING BIOSAFETY LABS

## Regional Laboratories approved under VRDL Network of DHR

|   Sr No | State/UT         | Name                                                                                     |
|---------|------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|       1 | Assam            | ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Dibrugarh                                         |
|       2 | Bihar            | All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna                                   |
|       3 | Chandigarh       | Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, (PGIMER), Chandigarh          |
|       4 | Delhi            | All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi                               |
|       5 | Himachal Pradesh | All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bilaspur                                |
|       6 | Kerala           | Government Medical College, Kozhikode                                                    |
|       7 | Madhya Pradesh   | All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal                                  |
|       8 | Odisha           | ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar                                       |
|       9 | Puducherry       | Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, (JIPMER) Puducherry |
|      10 | Rajasthan        | All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Jodhpur                                 |
|      11 | West Bengal      | ICMR - National Institute for Research in Bacterial Infections, Kolkata                  |

## BSL-3 Laboratories with ICMR

|   S. No. | State       | Name of Institute           | Level         | Total fund released   |
|----------|-------------|-----------------------------|---------------|-----------------------|
|        1 | Maharashtra | ICMR-NIV Pune               | BSL-4 & BSL-3 | Rs. 25 Crore          |
|        2 | Telangana   | ICMR-NARFBR, Hyderabad      | ABSL-3        | Rs. 20 Crore          |
|        3 | Tamil Nadu  | ICMR-NIRT, Chennai          | BSL-3         | Rs.17 Crore           |
|        4 | Tamil Nadu  | ICMR-NIRT Thiruvalur campus | BSL-3         | Rs.17 Crore           |
|        5 | Kerala      | ICMR-NIV Field Unit Kerala  | BSL-3         | Rs.17 Crore           |

BSL-3 Laboratories sanctioned under NCDC, DoHFW

|   S.No. | State            | Sites for BSL-3 labs   |
|---------|------------------|------------------------|
|       1 | Andhra Pradesh   | Mangalagiri            |
|       2 | Karnataka        | Hubli                  |
|       3 | Haryana          | Rohtak                 |
|       4 | Jharkhand        | Deoghar                |
|       5 | Himachal Pradesh | Kasauli                |
|       6 | Maharashtra      | Nagpur                 |
|       7 | Maharashtra      | Mumbai                 |
|       8 | Uttar Pradesh    | Varanasi               |
|       9 | Rajasthan        | Jaipur                 |
|      10 | Gujarat          | Surat                  |

BSL-3 Laboratories under Department of Biotechnology (DBT) Institutions

|   S. No. | State       |   No. of BSL-3 facilities |
|----------|-------------|---------------------------|
|        1 | Delhi       |                        04 |
|        2 | Haryana     |                        03 |
|        3 | Karnataka   |                        01 |
|        4 | Kerala      |                        01 |
|        5 | Odisha      |                        01 |
|        6 | Telangana   |                        02 |
|        7 | West Bengal |                        01 |

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