IIT Ropar to help set up mass isolation centres

Tribune News Service

Ropar, April 6

The faculty and students of IIT-Ropar in association with their counterparts from IIT-Delhi and some professionals from manufacturing companies have proposed to develop cost-effective isolation rooms for Covid-19 patients.

Dr Dhiraj K Mahajan, an associate professor at IIT-Ropar, said it could be done by partitioning already existing wards into negative pressure rooms (NPR), and making mass isolation centres for quarantining suspects or infected persons. This would help prevent the spread of virus in medical or quarantine centres, thus safeguarding the medical staff, he said.

Dr Mahajan said NPRs were specially designed isolation rooms in hospitals and medical centres to prevent the transmission of viruses through air by patients.

Dr Mahajan said to do his bit in these difficult times, he, along with a group of other professors, created a group of 250 members on WhatsApp to discuss the possible ways to fight Covid-19. During a brainstorming session, requirement for isolation rooms was discussed and the subsequent day, two students each from IIT-Ropar and IIT-Delhi came up with a draft report, inspiring many professionals to pitch in.

“A breakthrough came about when we asked a team of US-based simulation modeling company for help and got a positive response. A team of ANSYS, led by Pravin and Rohit, was not only very prompt in taking up our problems, but also suggested valuable additions in the report,” he said.

He said the simulation modeling results of the project had been found successful and the room would be prepared within five days, provided permission was granted to procure the required equipment during lockdown.

Dr Mahajan said one room comprising an exhaust fan, minimum efficiency reporting value filters and fine-grade plastic sheets would cost a maximum Rs9,000.