CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday directed the state government to file a response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the installation of Individual Donor Nucleic Acid Testing (ID-NAT) technology in all government-run and affiliated blood banks across Odisha.
The division bench comprising Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice MS Raman issued the directive while hearing the petition filed by Amarendra Mohapatra, a 64-year-old retired scientist from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)’s Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar.
While advocate Satya Sundar Kanungo represented the petitioner, Additional Government Advocate Debasish Tripathy appeared for the state.
The PIL sought direction to the state government to implement the ID-NAT technology through the Odisha State Medical Corporation Ltd (OSMCL) and phase out the currently used NAT-PCR testing method, which the petitioner termed obsolete and less effective in timely detection of blood-borne infections.
The petitioner contended that the adoption of ID-NAT was vital for enhancing the safety and scientific reliability of pre-transfusion blood screening. The advanced method significantly reduces the detection window for life-threatening infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B (HBV), and Hepatitis C (HCV).
The PIL further noted that several premier government medical institutions, including AIIMS-Delhi, AIIMS-Rishikesh, AIIMS- Bhubaneswar, and the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS), Delhi have already adopted the ID-NAT system. In addition, public-sector enterprises like HLL Infra Tech Services Ltd (a subsidiary of HLL Lifecare Ltd) and corporate hospitals such as SUM Hospital and KIMS in Bhubaneswar have also implemented the advanced screening mechanism.
The bench has adjourned the matter to September 15 for the next hearing.