Chandigarh, March 26 – The Haryana Health Department has approved the setting up of an HIV Viral Load Testing Lab at the Civil Hospital in Panchkula. This will be the second dedicated facility in Haryana, the first such lab being located in Rohtak.
This information was given by Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Sumita Mishra. She said that the lab has been approved at an annual cost of Rs 1.65 crore, which is based on an estimated workload of about 15,000 HIV Viral Load tests per year.
She said that this new lab will be set up using the existing Covid-19 molecular testing infrastructure at the Civil Hospital in Panchkula. Along with this, additional equipment required for HIV viral load testing will also be procured. This ensures that the facility can be operationalised immediately, and does not require a complete new setup.
The project was designed based on suggestions received from the Haryana State AIDS Control Society (HSACS), while its technical assessment was independently conducted by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) – the apex body dealing with HIV/AIDS in the country. As per national guidelines, the cost per HIV viral load test has been fixed at Rs. 1,100.
**Full cost to be borne by NACO - no burden on state exchequer**
The special thing is that the entire cost of setting up and running this testing facility will be borne by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), which will not put any financial burden on the Haryana state government.
Dr. Mishra further said that this is a model that other states can also adopt and expand their HIV testing capacity without putting any burden on their budget.
He said that for HIV-positive individuals, regular viral load testing is not an option but is absolutely necessary. These tests help doctors to find out if antiretroviral therapy is working effectively, help in early detection of treatment failure, and prevent the virus from becoming resistant to drugs. Patients face delays in treatment and adverse health outcomes due to lack of timely viral load testing. At present, samples from all districts of Haryana are sent to PGIMS Rohtak. This new lab will significantly reduce the time taken for testing, which will enable better monitoring of HIV positive patients.
Dr. Mishra said that the launch of this lab will significantly improve the facility of timely testing and monitoring of HIV. This will benefit patients who require regular viral load testing, and will also strengthen the ongoing efforts against HIV/AIDS in Haryana.
The HIV Viral Load Lab in Panchkula is part of a larger initiative by the Haryana government to decentralize specialized health services and bring them to the people who need them the most. By reusing existing infrastructure, working in partnership with national institutions, and not putting any additional burden on the state, this initiative sets a good example of efficient and patient-centric governance. Dr. Mishra said that around 15,000 tests are expected to be conducted every year. It is hoped that this lab will prove to be a key link in Haryana’s HIV care and treatment network, which will reduce delays in testing, enable better monitoring of treatment, and ultimately save lives.