NAKSHATRA to boost viral genomic surveillance and preparedness for future pandemics: ICMR NIV Director

By Shalini Bhardwaj
Pune (Maharashtra) [India], June 18 (ANI): The NAKSHATRA state-of-the-art initiative aims to revolutionise how genomic and bioinformatics data are processed, addressing limitations faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking to ANI, ICMR-NIV Pune Director Dr Naveen Kumar, explaining about NAKSHATRA, said, "A high-performance computing system has been launched. This is the first kind of facility for the sequence analysis or genomic surveillance of pathogens under the ICMR."
He further said, "So nowadays, many new COVID variants, viruses, or pathogens are being reported. Our resources were insufficient because analysing the millions of sequences in the public domain takes a lot of time. We were doing extensive sequence analysis using multiple strains, which used to take weeks.Now we can do the same work in 24-48 hours. It has increased the capability of our country for genomic surveillance, which will help us in pandemic preparedness."
Developed under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PMABHIM), the HPC facility forms the cornerstone of a new project titled "High Performance Computing Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Hub". The initiative aims to revolutionize how genomic and bioinformatics data are processed, addressing limitations faced during the COVID-19 pandemic due to conventional computing infrastructure.
The commissioning of the NAKSHATRA HPC facility is not just a technological upgrade--it is a national investment in speed, precision, and preparedness. By enabling faster analysis of complex genomic data, the facility positions India to detect new disease threats sooner, respond to outbreaks more efficiently, and accelerate AI-driven vaccine and drug development. (ANI)