DNA LMD taking charge of govt DNA labs

Nearly four years after establishment, the DNA Laboratory Management Department (DNA LMD) is finally started taking over the DNA profiling laboratories by taking charge of National Forensic DNA Profiling Laboratory (NFDPL).

The government established the department as the fifth wing under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs in August 2020.

Jahangir Alam, documentation officer of the Department of Women Affairs, handed over the charge to the Department of DNA management on behalf of the Multisectoral Program on Violence Against Women (MSPVAW) on Wednesday.

Director of DNA LMD, Syeda Akter Porag was also present in the program.

The DNA management department is set to take over the charge of Sylhet Divisional DNA Screening Laboratory on Thursday, officials from the department can confirm. All other Divisional DNA Screening Laboratory will be taken over the department gradually, the officer said.

NFDPL is the country’s first ever forensic DNA profiling laboratory, established at Dhaka Medical College by the government under multi-sectoral programme - MSPVAW. The Ministry of Women and Children Affairs and Danish International Development Assistance (DANIDA) has provided the required financial and technical support to establish the laboratory.

Later on, in order to extend the services of the DNA Laboratory across the country, seven Divisional DNA Screening Laboratories were established in Rajshahi, Chattogram, Sylhet, Barisal, Khulna, Rangpur and Faridpur Medical College Hospitals. These Laboratories receive cases from peripheral regions and send the collected samples to NFDPL for DNA analysis after a preliminary screening.

According to MSPVAW, NFDPL has accomplished DNA analysis for 73 cases (16 paternity, 56 rape with no tissue transplant consisting of 246 DNA samples in January 2024 alone. Till now the lab has analysed a total of 9425 cases that had a total of 30131 samples.

In Divisional DNA Screening Laboratories, they have received 9272 sample till end of January 2024.

With the takeover, two project components of the program -- Multi-sectoral Program on Violence Against Women– the visibility of this separate department comes to an existence that expresses the government's willingness to curb women oppression in possible quickest time through providing conclusive evidence to the concerned authorities.

According to the government officers of the ministry, it will ensure the growth of the labs needed to identify criminals, parenthood and dead bodies of those who die in accidents or natural disasters accurately within the quickest possible time.

It will also solve the financial issues related to the DNA labs, which have been seen on several occasions since it was initiated in 2006.
One of the top officials from NFDPL, asking to be unnamed as some of the procedures of the official takeover are yet to be completed, said that as soon as the department is established in August 2020, the labs technically become a part of the department.
From FY2022-23, the DNA laboratories of the country are operating using the budget coming from the department. Now, the DNA management department is taking over the responsibilities fully.

It will allow the laboratories to work more connectedly and with more collaborative manners as they will be operated under one same department, he said.

Besides, it will be easier to thrive for more excellence for the laboratories as the provision will also allow quick development of the laboratories, he said, adding that the divisional laboratories are working mostly as sample collection centers but they will soon be upgraded to an analysis or profiling lab.

Director of DLMD, Syeda Akter Porag said that they are hoping that the department will bring an integrated system in DNA analysis that will build a coordinated system to help prevent violence against women and also crimes in the country.