The Hindu: Oral vaccine all set to bite into rabies menace

November 3, 2006

Date:03/11/2006 URL:

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Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Oral vaccine all set to bite into rabies menace - Y. Mallikarjun

TERROR ON THE STREET: Once the threshold level of vaccinating 70 per cent

of stray dogs is reached, spread of rabies can be halted. - FILE PHOTO: K.R.

Deepak

HYDERABAD: With about 20,000 people dying of rabies every year in the

country, the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) is launching a pilot project

in metros and 20 rural areas to immunise stray dogs to prevent rabies.

An imported oral bait vaccine will be used under the project recommended

by the World Health Organisation (WHO). AWBI Chairman R.M. Kharb told The Hindu

on Thursday that rabies was fully preventable and had been eradicated from

several countries in Europe as well as Malaysia and Singapore.

However, it was causing a heavy financial burden on India as post-rabies

exposure treatment in humans was costing about Rs. 300 crores annually and

another Rs. 10 crores in animals. Besides human fatalities, rabid dog bites

cause a large number of deaths in cattle, sheep, goat and camels.

Dr. Kharb said that plans had been finalised to launch the WHO-recommended

immunisation programme on a pilot basis in Delhi and Chennai. It was proposed to

be launched shortly in Hyderabad and other metros. After assessing its efficacy

for a year, the project would be extended all over the country. The project

would annually cost about Rs.250 crores.

High incidence in rural areas

He said the incidence of rabies as well as mortality caused by the disease

was high in the rural areas.

Under the project, it was envisaged to form mobile teams which, on

receiving information about the occurrence of rabies case from an area, would

rush to the place and immunise the stray and also the dog bite victim.

He said that AWBI was the only agency in the country which was involved in

controlling the population of stray dogs through its animal birth control

programme and anti-rabies inoculation. While there are 15 to 20 million stray

dogs in the country, over 70,000 are being sterilised/neutered every year. " We

want to increase the exercise by three to four times. Then only it will have an

effect on population control, " Dr. Kharb added.

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