JAMMU: The CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR-IIIM), Jammu, on Sunday launched a three-day health check-up camp under the Phenome India–CSIR Health Cohort Knowledge Base (PI-CHeCK) initiative, aimed at promoting preventive healthcare and advancing personalised medical solutions for the Indian population.
The camp, scheduled from October 25 to 27, was inaugurated by Dr. Zabeer Ahmed, Director of CSIR-IIIM Jammu. Organised for the institute’s serving employees, pensioners and their spouses, the initiative is expected to benefit around 150 voluntary participants.
According to a spokesperson, the programme is part of a nationwide health research initiative being implemented across the network of 37 CSIR laboratories. It seeks to advance the vision of Swasth Bharat, Viksit Bharat through scientific research, systematic health monitoring and data-driven healthcare.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Ahmed highlighted the significance of the initiative being undertaken under the mentorship of Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister for Science and Technology and Vice President of CSIR. He said the programme represented an important step towards understanding the health patterns of the Indian population and developing improved approaches to disease prevention, early diagnosis and personalised treatment.
He explained that the initiative aims to establish a comprehensive health database by integrating large-scale health information with advanced technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). The resulting data is expected to help researchers identify potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers associated with various diseases, strengthening the scientific foundation for precision medicine tailored to the Indian population.
Following the inauguration, Dr. Ahmed visited the testing stations, reviewed the arrangements and interacted with scientists, healthcare personnel and volunteers. He appreciated the efforts of the organising team and encouraged employees, pensioners and their spouses to participate actively in the initiative.
During the three-day camp, participants will undergo a range of health assessments, including lung function tests, liver and kidney function tests, complete blood count (CBC) and lipid profile evaluations.
These assessments are intended to provide insights into individual health status while contributing to a research dataset that could support studies on lifestyle-related and other diseases.
The camp is being coordinated by Dr. Sumit G. Gandhi in collaboration with the PI-CHeCK team from the CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB).
The national programme is being coordinated by Dr. Shantanu Sengupta, Chief Scientist at CSIR-IGIB and Principal Investigator of the PI-CHeCK project, under the supervision of Dr. Souvik Maiti, Director, CSIR-IGIB, New Delhi.
Heads of research and administrative divisions, including Er. Abdul Rahim, Dr. Asha Chaubey, Dr. Sumit G. Gandhi, Dr. Rajkishor Rai, Dr. Saurabh Saran, Sh. Kaushal Kumar and Sh. Rajesh Kumar Gupta, were present at the inauguration.
Scheduled to conclude on October 27, the initiative reflects CSIR-IIIM Jammu’s commitment to employee wellness, preventive healthcare and scientific research aimed at improving health outcomes across the country.
