Mumbai, 13 August 2025

 

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) - Centre for Research, Management and Control of Haemoglobinopathies (ICMR-CRMCH), Chandrapur, organized an ‘Open School Day’ on 8^th August, 2025 (Friday) as part of the national-level ICMR-S.H.I.N.E (Science & Health Innovation for the Nextgen Explorers) initiative. The program, held simultaneously across all ICMR institutes, is designed to engage and inspire school students towards careers in science and biomedical research. The program was organized to commemorate the birth anniversary of Prof. V. Ramalingaswami, a pioneer in the field of medical research in India.  

A total of 140 high school students, studying in standards IX to XII, from Narayana Vidyalaya, Vidyavihar Junior College, and Indira Gandhi Vidhyalaya participated in the Open School Day program. The program commenced with a welcome address by the Officer-in-Charge, who introduced the objectives of the SHINE initiative. The students were taken through an engaging series of interactive sessions. These included short films on ICMR’s significant contributions, such as COVID-19 testing innovations, Covaxin development, TB control efforts, and drone delivery systems. It was followed by, a brief presentation was showcased to the students about the overview of ICMR-CRMCH’s work in haemoglobinopathy research, patient care, and policy advocacy, with special emphasis on Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) and Thalassemia.

Two of the institute’s major achievements that were highlighted are:

1. Public Health Policy Contribution & Newborn Screening: The institute’s pioneering newborn screening program for SCD, enabling early detection and timely intervention, and the recent formal handover of identified patient cohorts to the state government (NHM) for continued care.
2. SCD Diagnostic Kit Validation: ICMR-CRMCH’s role as a government-designated Centre for validating diagnostic kits for SCD screening. The Centre has tested and validated more than 30 different kits, ranging from rapid point-of-care tests to advanced molecular assays, significantly accelerating the availability of reliable diagnostics for remote and tribal areas. These efforts are a big boost for the National Sickle Cell Elimination Mission, which aims to eliminate the disease from India by 2047.

The students were also taken on guided laboratory tours for witnessing demonstrations of CBC, HPLC, ELISA, autoanalyzer, automated DNA extractors, PCR, and agarose gel electrophoresis used in the screening and diagnosis of sickle cell disease and thalassemia. They were then taken to the comprehensive clinical care unit at the Centre, where the students learned about free treatment services for SCD patients, including provision of Hydroxyurea, Pentid, Folic Acid, and essential vaccinations such as Pneumococcal (PCV), Typhoid, and Meningococcal vaccines.

The day’s session concluded with an engaging interactive session with scientists. The session received overwhelmingly positive feedback from students, who expressed excitement and curiosity about pursuing careers in science and healthcare. The visting students were presented with ICMR-CRMCH souvenir caps and given participation certificates.  

The ICMR-SHINE ‘Open School Day’ at ICMR-CRMCH successfully fulfilled its goal of sparking curiosity, raising awareness, and inspiring the next generation of young minds towards science and research.

 

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PIB Mumbai | Sriyanka Chatterjee/Darshana Rane

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(Release ID: 2156023)