DoNER Secretary visits Shija Blood Bank

IMPHAL, April 15: UK Sangma, Secretary of the Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Government of India along with DS Poonia, Chief Secretary Government of Manipur visited Shija Blood Bank and Transfusion Services at Langol today.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Kh Palin Managing Director of Shija Hospitals and Research Institute said Shija Blood Bank and Transfusion Services is an example of Private Public Partnership (PPP) in NE India funded by the North Eastern Council (NEC), Govt of India through the Planning Department, Govt of Manipur. He reminded that the blood bank and transfusion services was inaugurated by Paban Singh Ghatowar, Minister of State (IC) DoNER and Chairman NEC, Govt of India on September 16, 2012.

He highlighted the objective of the model blood bank as an endeavor to meet the shortage of blood in Manipur and its neighboring states by ensuring safety and quality of blood through state of the art highly reliable technologies. Some of the salient features of this blood bank are Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT), Apheresis apart from normal component separation, and requisite advanced laboratory for blood screening, he added.

He continued that this blood bank has become the 9th such centre in India and the first in Eastern India to install COBASS S 201 for NAAT and Apheresis for the first time in Manipur. "NAAT enables earliest detection of HIV, Hepatitis B and C. With high prevalence of HIV in the region, the window period of HIV is now reduced to 9 days with the help of this technology and thereby ensures the safest blood to the recipient," Dr Palin said.

During the occasion, UK Sangma lauded Shija Hospitals  for being the only health institute to work on the  PPP model. Informing that Rs 100 crores would be sanctioned for new projects in the state, he urged to prepare the Detailed Project Report quickly so that DoNER can sanction the said amount. If the Government of Manipur so desires, all the hospitals can be transformed into PPP models, he further added.