Bhubaneswar: Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has urged his cabinet colleague and Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to set up one of the four proposed National Institutes of Virology (NIV) in the Odisha capital.
In the letter, Dharmendra on Monday said that Bhubaneswar has emerged as a prime centre of medical research and education in Eastern India with the presence of world-class institutes such as All India Institute of Medical Sciences f AH.S), Sciences (ILS), ICMR-Regional Medical Research Center and ICAR-ICFMD (International Centre for Foot and Mouth Disease).
“Owing to its strategic location and skilled manpower. Bhubaneswar is well-positioned to be considered as a location for one of the four proposed NIVs. NIV Bhubaneswar will benefit from proximity to the above-mentioned R&D Centers of Excellence and leverage it for pushing collaborative research efforts. This can cater to the population of eastern, south-eastern and central Indian states. This will also be in line with the Purvodaya vision of Prime Minister,” he added.
Last month, Dharmendra had written to Harsh Vardhan, requesting him to facilitate setting up a Centre of Excellence (CEO) on marine biotechnology at the Institute of Life Sciences (ILS) in Bhubaneswar.
