08 November 2011
New Delhi, India
The strip currently used to measure sugar level is imported as it is patented abroad and costs around Rs 30 per strip
India’s premier health research body–Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) – has been tasked with developing affordable test strips for diabetes.
"Diabetes is highly prevalent in the country and the strip to measure sugar level is imported as it is patented abroad. It costs Rs 30. We have now assigned the task to ICMR to develop a strip for diabetes," Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said.
Azad has asked the ICMR to speed up its work on providing an economical solution for the diabetes screening strips to achieve the goal of screening at least 150 million people under the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.
With a population of nearly 50.8 million diabetics in the country, India tops the list of diabetics in the world, reports IANS.
The ICMR works through various stations across the country on issues such as virology, vector control, human reproduction, and matters of public health.
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