Chandigarh :
The Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, successfully conducted the first contact session of the five-day Intermediate Field Epidemiology Training Programme (I-FETP) from July 13 to 17, 2026, in collaboration with the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
The programme, held at Hotel Park View, Chandigarh, is a flagship capacity-building initiative under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM). The I-FETP has been expanded through a national network of 14 Regional Hubs to strengthen India’s public health workforce.
The training was conducted under the guidance of Dr. P.V.M. Lakshmi, Nodal Officer for I-FETP and Professor of Epidemiology, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, with mentorship from PGIMER faculty and experts from the World Health Organization (WHO).
As one of the country’s 14 Regional Hubs, PGIMER is implementing the one-year postgraduate certificate programme aimed at achieving the national goal of one trained epidemiologist for every 200,000 population, thereby enhancing disease surveillance, outbreak investigation and public health preparedness.
The first contact session was attended by 16 participants from Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, including Medical Officers, District Epidemiologists and District Surveillance Officers. Through lectures, case studies, practical exercises and interactive discussions, participants strengthened their knowledge and skills in disease surveillance, data analysis and outbreak investigation.
The session marked the beginning of a year-long training programme comprising five scheduled contact sessions designed to build a highly skilled epidemiology workforce across the region.
