Table II.

Basic biosafety requirements for the laboratories (some important features of procedures and processes to be followed during processing samples for coronavirus disease 2019 laboratory diagnosis)

Sr. No.	Requirements
1.	Personnel wear dedicated laboratory clothing (e.g., scrubs) which should not be worn outside the laboratory, anteroom or change room
2.	Primary containment devices should always be used in this procedure, these should be validated/certified and well-maintained and there are procedures in place for proper use
3.	Type of material to be used in this procedure for diagnostic samples should be up to 250 ml volumes. Absorbent materials should be used on the bench or BSC to contain spills and reduce splashing
4.	Proper practices for reducing/eliminating aerosols should be identified in the laboratory procedures; should be taught and verified on a regular schedule
5.	The measures should be in place to reduce infectious aerosols exiting the laboratory, all the aerosolization procedures and processes should be conducted in the biosafety cabinets and, during open bench, proper PPEs should be worn; depending on the risk assessment, respirators (e.g., N95, N100 and PAPR), goggles and face shield should be used
6.	Since all such procedures will be performed in biosafety cabinets, and being small volumes of samples handled, there will be very low potential and extent of a splash or spill in this procedure, however, personnel must be trained on biosafety and should have laboratory procedures in place during spill or splash
7.	Biosafety cabinets should always be used, these should be routinely validated/certified and well-maintained and there are procedures in place for proper use
8.	Contaminated waste should be safely and efficiently treated within laboratory and should be stored in the laboratory, till disposed properly
9.	No sharps should be used in these laboratory procedures
10.	All surfaces in the laboratory should be easy to clean and decontaminated. No equipment should be maintained or repaired without decontamination, and the process should be documented and validated
11.	The laboratory should have a complete and well-maintained inventory system. It should also have an active shipping and receiving programme and well-defined procedures and plans in place
12.	There should be medical surveillance programme in place
13.	Laboratory should implement standard laboratory practices for safety
14.	There should be defined procedures in place for entry into the laboratory
15.	Institution/laboratory should have defined roles and responsibilities for biosafety and should also be commitment to safety as well as comprehensive biosafety documentation and should conduct biosafety drills or exercises

BSC, biological safety cabinet; PAPR, powered air-purifying respirator