Cuttack: Orissa high court on Wednesday sought a response from the state govt on a PIL seeking implementation of advanced Individual Donor Nucleic Acid Testing (ID-NAT) in all govt-run and affiliated blood banks across Odisha.
The division bench, led by Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice M S Raman heard the petition filed by Dr Amarendra Mohapatra, a 64-year-old retired scientist of Indian Council of Medical Research’s Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar.
The petitioner urged the state to procure and install ID-NAT systems through the Odisha State Medical Corporation Ltd, replacing the currently used NAT-PCR technology, which he termed as outdated and less effective in detecting infections like HIV, HBV and HCV.
The PIL contended that ID-NAT provides more accurate and timely detection of blood-borne infections and has been adopted by institutions like AIIMS Delhi, AIIMS Rishikesh, AIIMS Bhubaneswar and ILBS Delhi.
Advocate Satya Sundar Kanungo appeared for the petitioner, while additional govt advocate Debasish Tripathy represented the state. The matter was adjourned to Sept 15.
Advanced Individual Donor-Nucleic Acid Testing (ID-NAT) is a highly sensitive molecular technique that directly detects the viral DNA or RNA of infectious agents like HIV, Hepatitis B (HBV), and Hepatitis C (HCV) in individual blood donor samples. This method significantly reduces the “window period” – the time between exposure to a virus and the development of detectable antibodies or antigens – thereby providing a crucial additional layer of safety to the blood supply by detecting infections earlier than traditional serological (antibody/antigen) tests.
