Three years later, central team approves location for Metropolitan Surveillance Unit

According to officials, MSU project is part of centre's pilot project under the integrated disease surveillance programme with the latter funding it

- Vicky Pathare

PUNE: After three years of hiccups, the central team of experts has finally approved the location to set up the metropolitan surveillance unit (MSU) in Kasba Peth, Pune. The MSU is a special unit with a laboratory facility aimed at understanding the nature and cause of diseases in an urban context and identifying potential disease outbreaks, officials said.

According to officials, the MSU project in Pune is part of the central government's pilot project under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) with the latter funding it. The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) since 2021 has been unable to provide a dedicated space that meets the required technical specifications of the unit. So much so that the central authorities were considering scrapping the decision to set up an MSU at one point. However, during a visit on May 9, a 5,000 square feet space in Jawale Bhavan, Kasba Peth, was approved for setting up the MSU, officials said.