India has highest number of rabies deaths

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Date:04/03/2007 URL:

http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/04/stories/2007030402090500.htm

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Karnataka - Bangalore

 

India has highest number of rabies deaths

 

Staff Reporter

 

 

 

 

EXCHANGE: F.X. Meslin Chief of Rabies Unit, WHO (left), having a word with

D. Nagaraja, Director of NIMHANS, at a conference in Bangalore on Saturday. —

Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

 

 

Bangalore: The number of stray dogs in India is upward of 25 million. But

the number sterilised and vaccinated annually is just 70,000. India has the

highest number of human rabies deaths — on an average, 20,000 a year.

 

These were some of the figures that were brought to light at the first

conference of the Rabies in Asia (RIA) Foundation, organised by the Kempegowda

Institute of Medical sciences (KIMS) and the National Institute of Mental health

and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), here on Saturday. RIA was established to understand

and " eliminate rabies in Asia " .

 

" The implementation of Animal Birth Control and anti-rabies programmes

have been too piecemeal, and has been working on individual initiative. There is

neither a national rabies control programme nor a dog population management

strategy, " said R.L Ichhpujani, Additional Director, National Institute of

Communicable Diseases, New Delhi.

 

Presenting the scenario for Asia, F.X. Meslin, Chief, Zoonoses Unit, World

Health Organisation, Geneva, drew attention to the fact that while India ranks

number one in world rabies deaths, it only comes fifth in terms of providing PEP

regimes.

 

D. Nagaraja, Director, NIMHANS said: " The fact that rabies has not been

brought into control shows that there is very little coordination between the

various authorities, and that no one will take the responsibility. Coordination

between the central and State Governments, municipal authorities and the

community at large is what we need, " he said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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