MERA-India ICMR

The purpose of Malaria Elimination Research Alliance (MERA) India is to identify articulate prioritise and respond to the research needs of the country in a coordinated and combinatorial way to eliminate malaria from India by 2030. MERA-India was launched by the ICMR Director General Dr Balram Bhargava on the eve of ‘World Malaria Day’ in 2019. It is a conglomeration of National and International partners like World Health Organization (WHO) National Vector Borne Diseases Control Program (NVBDCP) and medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) medical colleges and several Multi-National Companies (MNCs) working towards malaria control and elimination. The mandate of the alliance is to bring together researchers working in the field of malaria in the ICMR and non-ICMR Research Institutions Universities and National Programs. MERA-India fosters multicentric studies in thematic areas so as to provide a platform for pan-India data. The alliance spearheaded by ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research (ICMR-NIMR) launched a call for proposals focused on priority research areas and received an overwhelming response from researchers globally.