Pune: The Indian Council of Medical Research’s National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV) in Pune has inaugurated a high-performance computing (HPC) facility named NAKSHATRA, aimed at strengthening India’s capabilities in genomic research and public health preparedness.
Developed under the 'Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PMABHIM)', the new computing cluster marks a strategic initiative towards the government’s vision of ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’. The facility is expected to significantly enhance the nation’s ability to handle pandemic-related research and surveillance.
The HPC cluster is part of a larger project titled “High Performance Computing Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Hub”. It is designed to overcome challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in processing and analyzing large-scale genomic and bioinformatics data.
According to ICMR-NIV Director Dr. Naveen Kumar, the facility is timely as the threat from zoonotic diseases continues to grow globally. “From just 290 viral species and 2 virus families identified by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) in 1971, the numbers have jumped to 14,690 viral species and 314 families in 2023,” said Kumar.
He added, “New viruses and genetic variants are being reported almost daily. The reason is increased globalisation, global warming and deforestation, which is driving the emergence of novel pathogen.”
The NAKSHATRA cluster includes 12 compute nodes, 700 cores, and a total storage capacity of 1 petabyte. It will support advanced bioinformatics workflows such as next-generation sequencing (NGS), transcriptomics, metagenomics, phylogenetics, and structural bioinformatics.
The facility will also act as a central repository for sequencing data and extend support to Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs). Initially, it will cater to five ICMR institutes across the country.
Dr. Kumar highlighted that the HPC setup will be essential in supporting rapid, data-driven responses to various virus outbreaks, including Nipah, Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF), West Nile, Zika, COVID-19, mpox, and H5N1 influenza A.
The new infrastructure is expected to speed up the analysis of complex genomic data and enable early detection of emerging disease threats. It will also support AI-based vaccine and drug development, improving the overall response to health emergencies.
The ICMR-NIV believes that this facility will play a key role in future public health research and national preparedness against infectious disease outbreaks.