NCDC to boost health infra with surveillance enabling early interventions, says Mansukh Mandaviya

National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) branches in States and Union Territories will boost the public health infrastructure with prompt surveillance, rapid detection and timely monitoring of diseases enabling early interventions, says Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

New Delhi: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya Tuesday laid foundation stone of National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) branches in six States including Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh, which are aimed at enabling early interventions through prompt surveillance.

"Disease surveillance plays a crucial part in disease prevention, control and management. Towards this end the regional branches of NCDC will play a vital role. They will provide a boost to public health infrastructure with prompt surveillance, rapid detection and monitoring of disease thereby enabling early intervention," Mansukh said.

"There has been a shift from "token" to "total" approach where States are our partners in the spirit of collaborative and cooperative federalism to ensure quality, affordable and accessible healthcare to all," the Union Minister claimed. He said that the present pandemic of Covid19 has shown the country the importance of emerging and re-emerging infectious disease which can not only cause localised outbreaks but can also lead to a pandemic.

NCDC branches in the states and UTs will support the State governments in timely disease surveillance and monitoring. These will enable early warning leading to timely intervention based on evidence gathered from the field, the Minister pointed out.

The state branches will coordinate with NCDC HQR at New Delhi with real time sharing of data and information aided by cutting edge technology. NCDC branches would also be crucial in ensuring timely availability of updated guidelines so that accurate scientifically backed information can be disseminated easily.

Currently, NCDC has eight branches in states with focus on one or few diseases, these will be repurposed and new branches are being added with the mandate for integrated disease surveillance activities, dealing with Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR), multi-sectoral and entomological investigations etc, the Minister said.