Rapid Fire
India’s First State-Funded BSL- 4 Lab
- 19 Jan 2026
- 3 min read
Union Home Minister laid the foundation stone of India’s first state-funded Bio-Safety Level-4 (BSL-4) laboratory in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, marking a major milestone in strengthening the country’s health security, biotechnology research, and preparedness against deadly pathogens.
- BSL-4 Laboratory: BSL-4 represents the highest level of biological containment, designed to study highly infectious and deadly pathogens that often lack effective vaccines or treatments, under strict international safety protocols.
- The facility will enable research on Ebola, Nipah, Marburg, Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), and Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD), strengthening India’s outbreak preparedness and bio-defence capacity.
- India’s First State-Funded BSL-4 Facility: It will be the second civilian Bio-Safety Level-4 (BSL-4) laboratory in India.
- Developed under the Gujarat State Biotechnology Mission (GSBTM) and operated by the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC), which earlier decoded the SARS-CoV-2 genome.
- The complex will include BSL-4, BSL-3, BSL-2, ABSL-4, and ABSL-3 modules, along with high-end utilities and containment systems.
- Animal Bio-Safety (ABSL-4): The ABSL-4 unit will allow in-state testing and vaccine research on zoonotic diseases.
- National Facility Status: The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has signed an MoU declaring it a national facility, enabling access to experts and institutions across India.
- India’s Existing High-Security Labs:
- Civilian BSL-4 lab: National Institute of Virology, Pune.
- Defence BSL-4 lab: DRDO, Gwalior.
- India currently has 154 BSL-2 labs and 11 BSL-3 labs under the VRDL network (as of March 2025).
- Strategic Importance for India: Enables real-time response to deadly outbreaks without dependence on limited central facilities.
- Reduces reliance on sending animal samples to ICAR-NIHSAD, Bhopal, strengthening domestic capacity.
- Supports vaccine and therapeutic development using animal models, crucial for future pandemics.
| Read more:Building a Resilient R&D Ecosystem in India |
