Delhi: July 16: Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal’Nishank’ e-launched the World’s most affordable RT-PCR based COVID-19 diagnostic kit developed by IIT Delhi and approved by the ICMR and DCGI in New Delhi today.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Pokhriyal said that Corosure, COVID-19 Diagnostic Kit developed by Indian Institute of Technology Delhi is a step towards Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of a self-reliant India.He said that the country requires cheap and reliable testing for the country which can help to control the pandemic.
The Corosure Kit has been developed indigenously and is much cheaper than other kits. Shri Pokhriyal lauded the work done by the IIT Delhi researchers and congratulated everyone involved in the development and manufacturing of the kit.The Minister appreciated Prof. Vivekanandan Perumal and his research team of IIT Delhi for developing of COVID 19 diagnostic kit. The team includes Prashant Pradhan (PhD Scholar), Ashutosh Pandey (PhD Scholar), Praveen Tripathi (PhD Scholar), Dr. Akhilesh Mishra, Dr. Parul Gupta, Dr. Sonam Dhamija, Prof. Manoj B. Menon, Prof. Bishwajit Kundu and Prof. James Gomes.
He said that this affordable detection kit will help the country amid the ongoing crisis. Shri Pokhriyal informed that Corosure, the probe-free diagnostic kit has been manufactured by Delhi NCR-based Newtech Medical Devices.
Shri Pokhriyal informed that the diagnostic kit developed by IIT Delhi, which will be now available for use by the authorised testing labs with this launch, will significantly bring down the cost of COVID-19 RT-PCR testing. The base price of the RT-PCR assay is Rs 399. Even after adding the RNA isolation and laboratory charges, the cost per test will be considerably cheaper compared to currently available kits in the market.
The Minister further informed that IIT Delhi has given license to 10 companies to manufacture COVID-19 diagnostic kit using the technology developed by its researchers. (PIB)
