By IANS,
New Delhi : The World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) has accredited India’s National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTA) here, it was announced Sunday.
The decision was taken at WADA’s executive committee meeting in Montreal Saturday.
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has hailed the move as an important day for sports in the country.
“The executive committee approved the accreditation of a new laboratory in New Delhi, India. The National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTA) has successfully completed the requirements of the WADA accreditation process monitored by the agency’s laboratory Working Committee. The New Delhi laboratory thus becomes the 34th WADA accredited laboratory in the world,” a WADA statement on its website said Sunday.
IOA general secretary Randhir Singh said this had ended India’s endless wait for an accredited lab of its own.
“We are vary happy with the announcement. Now we can test samples in our country and not send them abroad. This will help keep a check on doping in a big way. We will have to increase the staff in the labrotary according to WADA rules,” Randhir Singh told IANS.
Delhi is the seventh WADA accredited lab in Asia after Beijing, Penang (Malaysia), Tokyo, Seoul, Bangkok and Ankara (Turkey).
Hitherto, India used to send the samples abroad for testing and this consumed a lot of time and money.