Research Projects

The global spread of COVID-19 has raised concerns about community health, with human-originating excreta, clinical samples, and waste from symptomatic/asymptomatic patients introducing the virus into the environment, particularly in water sources. Wastewater surveillance (WWS) for COVID-19 involves testing sewage for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, which if positive, indicates the virus's presence. Combining clinical testing, epidemiology data, WWS, and whole genome sequencing of the virus has proven effective in tracking disease trends, infectivity rate, and emerging variants. Genomic-based WWS is becoming a rapidly evolving area of research and operationalization as an adjunct to clinical testing for measuring infection rates and predicting future spread. The North East region (NER) of India is a strategically important gateway for the "Look East Policy" of India, with a unique population with diverse ethnicities, lifestyles, food habits, and socio-economic groups. The region is rich in natural water resources, such as rivers, tributaries, hill streams, lakes, ponds, and ground water, which are lifelines for the population, particularly in rural areas. The aim is to map the spatiotemporal distribution of SARS-CoV-2 variants in wastewater at treatment, medical, and residential facilities, and correlate with the infectivity and clinical outcomes of SARS-CoV-2. CSIR-NEIST, the only CSIR lab in NER, has been leading the COVID-19 testing, sero-surveillance, and SARS-CoV-2 genome surveillance of clinical samples. This research could provide crucial information about circulating variants in the community and investigate potential sources of wastewater as an early warning system.