National Action Plan for dog Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030

What is the news?

The Union Health Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Union Minister of Animal Husbandry has launched the “National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination from India by 2030“.

What is Rabies?

Rabies is a zoonotic, viral disease. People are usually infected with rabies following a deep bite or scratch from an animal with rabies. Transmission to humans by dogs accounts for up to 99% of cases.

The two clinical forms of Rabies are Furious Rabies, characterised by hyperactivity and hallucinations and Paralytic Rabies characterised by paralysis and coma. If immediate medical care is not given to a person after a potential rabies exposure, the virus can reach the brain and result in death.

Treatment: Post-exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), which consists of a dose of human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) and a rabies vaccine, is administered on the day of rabies exposure. This prevents virus entry into the central nervous system, which results in imminent death.

Impact of Rabies in India 

Rabies is 100% fatal, but 100% vaccine-preventable. Around 33% of global rabies deaths are recorded in India.

About the National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination

The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has drafted the National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030 (NAPRE) in consultation with the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.

As part of the plan, the ministers have urged all the States and UTs to make Rabies a notifiable Disease. They also launched the “Joint Inter-Ministerial Declaration Support Statement” for Elimination of Dog mediated Rabies from India by 2030 through One Health Approach.

Moreover, villagers in India refer to Rabies as ‘Hadakwa’, unfamiliar with the English name. The mere mention of ‘Hadakwa’ induces terror in rural areas. Hence, the minister advised the officials to use the more familiar term ‘Hadakwa’ in popularizing the activities to be taken up under the Plan.

Source:  This post is based on the article “National Action Plan for dog Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030” published in PIB on 28th Sep 2021