Amit Shah lays foundation of ₹362 crore BSL-4 bio-containment lab in Gandhinagar
Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone of the BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility of the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre in Gandhinagar on 13 January 2026.
Summary
The BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility of the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC) in Gandhinagar, whose foundation stone Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid on 13 January 2026, is being built at a cost of ₹362 crore over 11,000 square metres. Shah said it will be India's second such high-level laboratory after the National Institute of Virology in Pune, and the first to be built by a state government. The lab will let scientists safely research infectious and deadly viruses, including diseases that spread from animals to humans, and end dependence on foreign countries for testing samples of dangerous viruses.
Key facts
- Facility
- BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility, Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre
- Place
- Gandhinagar, Gujarat
- Foundation stone
- 13 January 2026, by Amit Shah
- Cost and area
- ₹362 crore; 11,000 sq m
- Distinction
- India's second high-level lab after NIV Pune; first built by a state government
- Purpose
- Safe research on deadly viruses and zoonotic diseases; domestic testing
Practice MCQs 3 questions
Where is the BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility of the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre, whose foundation was laid in January 2026, being built?
Show answer
Correct answer: D — Gandhinagar
PIB (Home Affairs): Amit Shah laid the foundation stone of the facility in Gandhinagar.
According to Amit Shah, the Gandhinagar BSL-4 lab will be India's second such high-level laboratory after which institution?
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Correct answer: A — National Institute of Virology, Pune
PIB (Home Affairs): after the National Institute of Virology in Pune, this will be India's second high-level laboratory, and the first built by a state government.
What is the cost of the BSL-4 Bio-Containment Facility being built at GBRC, Gandhinagar?
Show answer
Correct answer: D — ₹362 crore
PIB (Home Affairs): the complex is being built at a cost of ₹362 crore over 11,000 square metres.