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The Indian Council of Medical Research has designated the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Nagpur as a "mentor institute" in the fight against the novel coronavirus outbreak, a senior official said on Saturday.
It will mentor medical colleges in Maharashtra, Goa, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli to establish COVID-19 diagnostic facilities, an ICMR statement said.
The AIIMS, Nagpur is one of the 13 'Institutions of Eminence' in the country.
"The move has been made with directions from Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) to increase capacity for COVID-19 testing in all government and private medical colleges in the country," said Director-CEO of AIIMS, Nagpur Major General (Dr) Vibha Dutta.
"AIIMS Nagpur will serve as mentor institute to 34 medical colleges, comprising 32 in Maharashtra, one each in Goa and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
The core team of the institute, comprising proficient microbiologists, faculty and trained technical staff will conduct site assessments, and mentor these colleges," Dutta said.
"A comprehensive review will be conducted to assess the feasibility of setting up real time RT-PCR-COVID-19 testing as per ICMR requirements in all the medical colleges.
Funds will be given by state governments," Dutta added.
