Centre okays resource facility for bio-medical research

 New Delhi: The central government on Wednesday gave its go-ahead to set up a National Resource Facility for Bio-medical Research at Genome Valley in Hyderabad.

The institution, whose estimated cost is Rs.338.58 crore, will be the first of its kind for quality laboratory animals for basic and applied biomedical research in the country, an official statement said.

The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The resource centre, to be set up by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), is expected to be functional by 2018-19, it said.

"It will be developed as a world-class facility for breeding and housing of animals such as primates, canines and other specialised models such as transgenic and knockout rodents required for testing of various R&D products," the statement added.

The facility will create, develop and provide access to a range of laboratory animals and related technological resources for advancement of biomedical research in the country, mainly to facilitate research in medical colleges, research and academic institutions, universities and Biotech/Bio-pharma companies, it said.

It will also provide training facilities for personnel in the specialised areas in the field of biomedical research.

The state government has allotted 102.69 acres of land at Genome Valley, Hyderabad, free of cost, to the ICMR for Establishment of National Animal Resource Facility (NARF) for Biomedical Research.