Pune: SPPU to set-up COVID testing centre

Pune, July 1, 2020: While the Pune local administration has associated with many government and private laboratories to increase the Coronavirus Disease (COVID) testing, the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) is also gearing up to join the mission ‘testing’ by establishing a testing centre on campus. The university is underway setting up a Molecular Diagnostic and Research Centre wherein it will extend its resources for efficient and more testing.

SPPU Vice-Chancellor Nitin Karmalkar stated that around 15 professors from the university have been closely working in the research area with experts from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune. While there is a need to increase the COVID testing in the city, the centre will prove to be beneficial in testing and diagnosis of various diseases in future. After receiving the approval, the centre will enable 350 sample testings in a day, possibly in the next one and half months.

Karmalkar stated that SPPU has been working in the areas of biotechnology and microbiology, however, no work has been done in the virology sector. Once the centre is established, the departments of biotechnology and microbiology will be joined to it. Meanwhile, the professors working with IISER will also have completed their training by then. He also informed that the university has been actively working on the national and local level during this pandemic. It has provided data on information like areas which have less number of COVID infected patients, which areas should be declared containment zones, other solutions to Pune local administration.