Patna: Samrat Ashoka Tropical Disease Research Centre - built with Rs 100 crore central assistance at the city's Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences (RMRIMS) in Agamkuan - is set for inauguration this month.

Union health minister J.P. Nadda is likely to inaugurate it anytime after January 14, RMRIMS director Pradeep Das said. The research centre-cum-hospital would have 150 beds.

The facility will be the second such centre in the eastern zone. "Tropical diseases are prevalent or endemic to a certain region because of temperature, climate and other reasons," institute director Das said. "So the new centre would carry out research and provide treatment for diseases like kala-azar, malaria, dengue and Japanese Encephalitis, HIV infection, AIDS and tuberculosis. According to a RMRIMS study, around 13 per cent of people in the state suffer from these diseases," Das said.

The new centre will also carry out research. "Right now, there are no good labs for research on tropical diseases. Only RMRIMS conducts research on kala-azar and some other diseases, but starting of this centre would boost treatment and research of tropical diseases," Das said.

According to health department sources, around 5,000 cases of kala azar and 7,590 new HIV positive cases were reported in Bihar in 2017. According to Bihar State AIDS Control Society data, there are 42,840 AIDS patients in Bihar. Some 2,500 dengue cases (confirmed through rapid diagnostic test and Elisa test) and over 900 chikungunya cases were also reported. "Studies will be initiated on vectors causing filaria and malaria. This is called xenodiagnosis," an RMRIMS official said.

"The centre will also do serum-epidemiological study of disease to find the virus causing the infection. The institute will also take up clinical trial of anti-JE drugs, besides conducting a study on genes to study susceptibility of TB infection and clinical trials of drugs to evaluate optimal duration of TB treatment."