The central government is planning to frame a comprehensive health research policy to generate evidence base for optimum health systems and services in India.

The policy will call for establishing linkages between health research and national health programmes to facilitate the operationalisation of evidence-based programmes and to obtain feedback for the optimization of health research. Setting up of a National Health Research System (NHRS) and a National Health Research Management Forum (NHRMF) are to be the major outcomes of the policy announcement.

According to the revised draft policy, recently put for public debate by the Health Ministry, there would be clear-cut directives for encouraging the development of fundamental research in areas relevant to health such as physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, microbiology, pathology molecular sciences and cell sciences. Efforts will be made to ensure that a national critical mass of scientists who can contribute the benefits of modern technology to health research is developed.

The government intends the NHRS to serve as a platform for optimal use of information, communication and networking technology to ensure the availability of global knowledge base for national programmes and the research is channeled in relevant directions without unnecessary duplication.

The setting up of a National Health Research Management Forum has also been proposed. The forum will be responsible for evolving, harmonizing and evaluating the implementation of the National Health Research Policy.

The forum is to have representatives from Indian Council of Medical Research, Department of Biotechnology, Department of Science and Technology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and University Grants Commission.

It has been suggested that the Minister of Health will chair NHRMF and co-chaired by an eminent National health researcher. The secretariat of the forum shall be in ICMR and the director general of ICMR will be the secretary.

NHRMF is to develop a five-year projection of the plans for health research and to prepare a biennial rolling National Health Research Plan. It will be an overarching agency to promote the development of health research activities in the country and empowered for biomedical & health research management.