Two diagnostic kits developed by ICAR-IVRI under ‘Make in India’ initiative released

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : Two diagnostic kits developed by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) – Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, namely the Bluetongue sandwich ELISA (sELISA) and the Japanese Encephalitis lgM ELISA kit for the control of Swine and Detection of Antigen, were released by  Atul Chaturvedi, Secretary Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying, and Dr T Mahopatra, Secretary DARE and DG, ICAR, at Krishi Bhawan on October 15, 2019.

This indigenous technology will not just help save foreign exchange as the newly developed kits cost ten times lesser than the imported ones but also has the potential to earn foreign exchange, according to a PIB release.

Addressing the gathering, Dr Trilochan Mohapatra briefed about the main characteristics of the two Kits. Talking about the Japanese Encephalitis (JE) ELISA Kit (IgM) for Swine, he mentioned that the JE is a re-emerging viral zoonotic disease leading to death of children every year in the country. The kit developed by the ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute will be really helpful in assessing the active infection of JE virus in the swine population which predicts the outbreak of JE in the humans. As compared to the commercial kit available in the market at a price of Rs 52,000; the ICAR-IVRI developed is available for the farmers at a minimal price of Rs 5,000 only. The Director General mentioned that each kit is meant for testing around 45 samples.

Highlighting the key features of another Kit “Bluetongue: Sandwich ELISA for detection of Antigen”, Dr Mohapatra stated that the Bluetongue (BT) virus is an insect-transmitted viral disease of domestic and wild ruminants that includes the camelid species. The disease is widespread among the sheep, goats, cattle, buffaloes and camels in the country. With the help of the Kit, the Bluetongue Virus can be controlled with the vaccination of susceptible animals, vector control and quarantine of infected animals with the good management practices. Apart from the vaccination, the early diagnosis and isolation of the infected animals are one of the commonly suggested preventive methods for controlling the spreading of the disease.

Chaturvedi described the joint initiative by the ICAR and the Department of Animal Husbandry as an incredible initiative. He said that release of these two Kits will definitely be beneficial for not only the farming community, but the society as a whole.