CM to open biotech lab at Life Sciences Park

Thiruvananthapuram: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the new administrative block and the biotech lab building at the Life Science Park at Thonnakkal on April 19. Industry minister P Rajeeve will be the chief guest.
The Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) which carried out the construction has completed 80,000 sq feet for the new building. The building will house 16 labs for biosafety, of which eight have been completed. The remaining eight labs are expected to complete in 2023-24 financial year. With the completion of this project, the Life Science Park will house 22 labs for various disciplines. It will also have facilities to detect over 80 viral diseases.
In addition to this, it has also been decided to construct BSL 3 labs. This will help in studying the infectious agents or toxins that may be transmitted through air.
The park is being set up in two phases. For the first phase development 75 acres have been found for the project of which 70 acres have been acquired by KSIDC. For the second phase 1,123 acres of land will be acquired. Land will be given to entrepreneurs who are interested in setting up their units for medical research. The Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences will be setting up a medical devices park here.