SHILLONG: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday inaugurated the Centre for the Study of Complex Malaria in India (CSCMI) Malaria Research Laboratory and Master of Public Health Programme at the Indian Institute of Public Health (IIPH), here.
Also present for the inauguration was Health and Family Welfare Minister A L Hek.
Addressing the gathering, the chief minister said that malaria has been a cause of concern and has affected all to a great extent though the incidence and mortality rate of the disease has come down in the state in the past few years.
“However, times are changing and the environment is also changing thus giving rise to many and new vector-borne diseases and institutes like these will be a natural expansion to other vector-borne diseases and will allow the government and policy makers to make the right decisions and be prepared to react to outbreaks,” he added.
Operational since 2010, the CSCMI is a US National Institute of Health-funded international centre of excellence in malaria research, and a partnership between researchers at New York University and scientists and clinicians in India, under the leadership of Professor Jane Carlton.
The overall goal of the CSCMI is to develop the knowledge, tools, and evidence-based strategies needed to support Indian malaria intervention and control programmes, and to build research capacity in India.
