With the North-Eastern states bordering Nepal, China, Myanmar and Bangladesh throwing up new challenges in communicable diseases, the Department of Health Research (DHR) is planning a number of steps including creation of multidisciplinary research unit (MRU) with animal facility and labs to monitor and tackle the cross border transmission.

The department has identified priority areas for research as the region shares borders with several countries, raising the risk of cross border transmission in communicable diseases like vector borne diseases, viral diseases including dengue/DHF, JE, chikungunia, AES, West Nile virus, measles, hepatitis, HPV, HIV/ STDs, rickettesial diseases, acute diarrhoeal diseases, bacterial diseases including TB and some parasitic diseases (including neurocysticercosis because of close association with pigs), paragonimiasis etc.

The focus of NE projects is primarily to conduct translational research and to cater the problems of North East for the benefit of people and patient welfare, sources said.

A multi-disciplinary unit including upgradation of animal house facility in a medical college in the region is being established to bridge the gap in the infrastructure which is inhibiting health research and to improving the health research and health services. This will also ensure the geographical spread of health research infrastructure. The multi-disciplinary laboratories will be established in a centralized area accessible to the faculty and the students. In addition, the house facilities will also be upgraded.

In Arunchal Pradesh, the Health Account Scheme (HAS) project has been initiated. This will provide live time trends of health status of the community at the study site through provision of health screening and education in a comprehensive manner.  ICMR developed an ELISA kit for identification of paragonimiasis (lung fluke) after characterisation of Paragonimus species in NE India, department sources said.

Under a special North East Initiative, several schemes have been initiated which include providing support for full proposals through the North East Project Review Committee, providing seed money grant up to Rs. 10 lakhs to the new researchers of the NE Region, etc. Some research units are also being set up in all the medical colleges of NE Region. All these schemes are designed to promote research aptitude and capabilities in the scientists working in the NE region so that they can later continue the research activities and benefit the people of their region, according to the department.