Position: Lab Technician, Tuberculosis
Location: Solapur (Maharashtra)
Overview
WJCF is an Indian non-profit organisation committed to saving lives by reducing the burden of disease and strengthening government-owned, high-quality health systems. Since 2007, WJCF has combined data-driven approaches and deep public health expertise with strong government partnerships to design, implement, and scale solutions across India’s national and state health programmes. We work for and at the service of governments — supporting the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and State Departments of Health to build systems that are strong, sustainable, and led by Indian institutions.
As an Indian organisation, WJCF brings an unmatched depth of contextual understanding of India’s health system architecture, policy landscape, and implementation realities across diverse geographies and population groups. This local institutional credibility, combined with global technical rigour, is central to WJCF’s effectiveness as a partner to governments and donors.
Our work is built around four complementary roles: as a Trusted Government Partner, co-designing programmes and strengthening health system architecture; as an Operational Partner, translating strategies into effective on-the-ground delivery; as a Market Shaper, improving the availability and affordability of health commodities; and as an Ecosystem Catalyst, convening governments, development partners, academia, and the private sector to drive solutions at scale.
WJCF’s programme portfolio spans thematic areas like hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, vector-borne diseases), syphilis, cervical cancer, diabetes, maternal and childhood anaemia, immunisation, under-5 diarrhoea and pneumonia, sexual and reproductive health, Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri – Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), hypoxemia and oxygen, safe drinking water, sickle cell disease, presbyopia, lead poisoning, and cross cutting thematic areas like AI and Health, integrated disease surveillance, and climate and health.
We currently support programmes across 19 states and union territories, with teams working at national, state, district, and sub-district levels.
Our people are our greatest asset. WJCF brings together a talented, diverse team of professionals from public health, analytics, consulting, healthcare, the development sector, and academia, all united by a shared commitment to improving health outcomes for the people of India. We are entrepreneurial, action-oriented, and deeply grounded in the communities and systems we work in. Our field teams collectively bring hundreds of years of experience managing public health programmes across the country.
WJCF collaborates with a range of international and domestic partners and donors to advance its mission, including an affiliation with the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), a global health organisation with which WJCF shares a common mission and values.
Program Overview:
The World Health Organization estimated that 10.7 million people fell ill with tuberculosis (TB) in 2024 and 1.23 million died from it. India accounted for the highest proportion of TB burden of any country, with 25% of the global cases, and 25% of death caused by TB. The National TB Elimination Program (NTEP), headed by the Central TB Division (CTD), MoHFW, is an expansive public health program with the ambitious goal of ending TB in line with the mandate of the Sustainable Development Goals.
WJCF has been supporting the CTD and state health departments of more than 15 states in the mission to end TB. WJCF’s TB program has been operational since 2012, and its interventions address several program areas, including preventive therapies, case detection, access to diagnostics, engagement of the private sector, and more. It also lends technical support to Governments across a range of themes- strategic planning, data analytics, monitoring and evaluation, patient management and delivery of services.
Project Background:
The Central TB Division (CTD) has an ambitious TB Elimination goal and is scaling up case finding and adoption of molecular testing for all presumptive TB cases. WJCF aims to support CTD’s efforts by augmenting their efforts in active case finding, designing optimal strategies for case finding efforts, and assessing the use of technology and novel diagnostic products in India’s public and private health delivery systems.
Open PCR for TB detection potentially enables redeployment and optimal utilization of the RT PCR infrastructure developed during COVID -19 pandemic. Recently, RT- PCR kits, which can be used for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in sputum, using Real – Time PCR system, have been validated by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), licensed by Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and recommended for programmatic use by the National Technical Expert Group (NTEG).
The current project aims to evaluate performance of RT-PCR test kits for TB testing through open PCR equipment, in real-world field settings. Further, the project aims to identify operational challenges and gather feedback from laboratory staff and clinicians to assess any added value of open RT-PCR kits in complementing existing co-located NAAT platforms.
The key objective of the exercise to demonstrate utility of open RT-PCR kits for TB detection among asymptomatic TB in patients presenting with an abnormal Chest X-Ray (CXR).
Position Summary:
The Laboratory Technician would work under the supervision of Laboratory In-Charge / Microbiologist. The role would involve performing the pre-analytical, analytical, and post-analytical phases of molecular testing and sample processing. Laboratory Technician would be responsible for technical, supervisory, and quality assurance required to manage molecular diagnostic workflows.
This position requires a highly motivated individual with strong problem solving, analytical, communication and technical skills, who is comfortable working independently while collaborating closely with laboratory personnel in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment.
Responsibilities:
- Technical Operations: Oversee and perform all stages of RT-PCR testing, including sample receipt, nucleic acid extraction, master mix preparation, and thermal cycling.
- Quality Assurance: Implement and monitor Quality Management Systems and Internal Quality Control to ensure the accuracy of molecular results.
- Equipment Maintenance: Ensure periodic calibration and maintenance of specialized equipment such as thermal cyclers, centrifuges, and biosafety cabinets.
- Supervision & Mentoring: Train, supervise and mentor junior technicians, laboratory assistants, and attendants.
- Data Management: Facilitate data entry into Laboratory Information Management Systems, Ni-kshay and validate performance indicators before final reporting.
- Safety & Compliance: Enforce Infection Prevention and Control protocols and manage biohazardous waste disposal according to national standards.
- Key Performance indicators: Ensure adherence to TAT, error rates below benchmarks, documentation for quality audits.
- Support the development of presentations and reports for the dissemination of information among partners, donors, and stakeholders.
- Undertake other responsibilities as needed
Qualifications:
- M.Sc. Medical Microbiology / Applied Microbiology /General Microbiology / Clinical Microbiology/ Biotechnology/ Medical Biotechnology. Experience: 3 years’ experience in TB laboratory with at least one year in RT PCR work.
OR
B.Sc. Microbiology/Biotechnology/ Biochemistry /Chemistry / Life Science with or without DMLT.
Experience: 5 years’ experience in TB laboratory with at least one year in RT PCR work.
- Expertise in RT PCR workflows and mycobacteriology techniques.
- Meticulousness to spot contamination and other technical issues that could invalidate test results. Supervisory leadership for mentoring junior staff.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Hindi.
- Ability to work independently, prioritize effectively, and manage multiple tasks simultaneously.