Centre for AIDS and Related Diseases
BackCENTRE FOR AIDS AND RELATED DISEASES (CA&RD)
Name of Technical Division: |
CENTRE FOR AIDS AND RELATED DISEASES (CA&RD) |
Head of Department /Officer In Charge : |
Dr. Manju Bala |
Designation |
Additional Director & HOD |
Qualification |
MBBS, MD (Microbiology) |
Official Phone No. |
011-23912836 |
Official Email ID |
hod[dot]micro[at]ncdc[dot]gov[dot]in |
Officers in the Division:
S.No. |
Officer Name |
Designation |
Qualification |
Official Phone No. |
Official Email ID |
1 |
Dr. Simirita Singh |
Joint Director |
MBBS, MD (Microbiology) |
20832458 |
simrita[dot]singh[at]gov[dot]in |
2 |
Dr. Aarti Tewari |
Deputy Director |
MBBS, MD (Microbiology) |
20836050 |
aarti[dot]tewari[at]gov[dot]in |
3 |
Dr. Bibhash Nandi |
Assistant Director |
MBBS, MD (Microbiology) |
23909334 |
bibhash[dot]nandi[at]ncdc[dot]gov[dot]in |
Laboratories/ Units under division -
- Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre
- National Reference Laboratory for HIV
- Immunology Laboratory
- STI and Opportunistic Infections Laboratory
- HIV Serology Laboratory
- Molecular Virology Laboratory
- Blood Collection Centre
Activities undertaken in the division –
- Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre
- The client is counseled and tested for HIV, on his/her own free will or as advised by a treating doctor.
- The main functions include:
- Early detection of HIV infection
- Provision of basic information on modes of transmission and prevention of HIV/AIDS, STI and TB
- Promoting behavioral change and reducing vulnerability
- Link people with other HIV prevention, care and treatment services
- Biannual participation in External Quality Assessment Programme (EQAS) for HIV serology conducted by the linked SRL
- Quarterly blinded rechecking of diagnostic HIV testing by the linked SRL (MAMC, Delhi)
- National Reference Laboratory for HIV
- HIV/ HBV/ HCV Diagnostic Kits evaluation
- A consortium of National Reference Laboratories (NRLs) comprising of NCDC, Delhi; NARI, Pune; NICED, Kolkata and NIMHANS, Bangalore has been formed
- As part of the consortium activity, the center evaluates diagnostic kits (HIV/HBV/HCV), which are referred by NACO or by the procurement agency hired by NACO
- Diagnostic kits submitted for evaluation is tested with a panel comprising of 500 well characterized members (100 positive and 400 negative samples)
- Performance of the kit is evaluated by calculating various test indices
- Sensitivity
- Specificity
- Characterization of panel for kit evaluation
- Regular collection of blood/ plasma bags from various DCGI approved blood banks of Delhi
- Characterized for developing panel for HIV/HBV/HCV kit evaluation
- Conduction of External Quality Assessment Scheme (EQAS) for State Reference Laboratories and their linked Integrated Counseling & Testing Centers
- 13 State Reference Laboratories (SRLs) in the four states viz. Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir and their associated ICTCs are linked with the National Reference Laboratory (NRL) at NCDC
- EQAS for HIV serology programme is conducted twice a year for all the 13 SRLs and their associated ICTCs
- A proficiency testing (PT) panel comprising of 08 members for each of the SRLs and a bulk PT panel comprising of 04 members for ICTCs is sent after getting validated from NARI, Pune
- Report of testing conducted on panel by SRLs is compiled and feedback is given to the respective SRLs with a copy to NACO & NARI, Pune
- Confirmation of HIV serostatus of all samples with indeterminate / discordant results referred from SRLs
- Participation in EQAS for HIV serology conducted by the National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), Pune.
- Immunology Laboratory
- Absolute CD4-T Lymphocyte count and CD4% estimation in HIV positive patients
- Laboratory is linked with the Anti-retroviral (ART) centre of DCBH Hospital, DDU Hospital and other linked PPTCT centres of Delhi
- Absolute CD4-T Lymphocyte count and CD4% estimation is performed on HIV positive samples received from linked centre by flowcytometry using FACS Count machine
- Participation in External Quality Assessment Programme (EQAS) for CD4/CD4% T-Lymphocyte count conducted by National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), Pune
- STI and Opportunistic Infections Laboratory
- Diagnosis of syphilis [Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) test and Treponema Pallidum Haemagglutination Assay (TPHA)] is carried out for all the samples of ICTC clients with STI symptoms, routine screening of pregnant ladies and referrals from various hospitals of Delhi.
- Participation in EQAS conducted by VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital for both RPR and TPHA
- HIV Serology Laboratory
- Designated as referral laboratory for HIV-2 confirmation for patients referred from ART centres of 7 North Indian states of Delhi, Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
- Quality control testing of serum samples received under HIV Sentinel Surveillance (HSS-ANC round) from various sentinel sites in North India
- HIV testing on Dried Blood Spot (DBS) samples under Integrated Biological & Behavioural Surveillance (IBBS) and High Risk Group-HIV Sentinel Surveillance (HRG-HSS)
- Twenty-eight high risk group (HRG) sentinel sites spread across four states namely Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Rajasthan & Delhi have been linked to this centre
- HIV testing of DBS samples as one of the identified laboratories under National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4)
- Capacity building activities
- Conducting EQAS Workshops for SRL staffs; Technical officers, Lab technician and Quality Managers of State AIDS Control Society (SACS)
- Mentoring SRLs for achieving NABL accreditation
- Support to training courses run at NCDC
- The center periodically conducts IEC activities for HIV/AIDS awareness
- Technical support to National AIDS Control Programme
Significant Achievement
- The Centre has achieved NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accreditation in the field of medical testing as per ISO 15189:2012
- The National Reference Laboratory at this Centre has been identified as one of the four laboratories to be entrusted with the task of HIV/HBV/HCV kit evaluation by National AIDS Control Organization
- The Centre was awarded the certificate of achievement for outstanding performance in Quality Assurance in HIV testing and achieving international standards as per ISO 15189 by NACO
- The Centre is giving 100% concordant results in various External Quality Assessment Schemes (EQAS) for past many years
- The Centre was awarded the certificate of achievement for outstanding performance as a Training Institute by Delhi State AIDS Control Society (DSACS) on 1st November, 2008, on the Occasion of the 11th Foundation Day of DSACS
Current Research Projects
- Study of the molecular determinants of mother-to-infant transmission of Human
Immunodeficiency Virus Type-1 under DHR