What’s in the news?

• The Government of India has launched a National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NAP-SE) with a vision to reduce snakebite deaths by halve by 2030. 
• NAPSE provides a broad framework for states to develop their own action plan for management, prevention and control of snakebites through the ‘One Health’ approach. 
• The activities envisaged under human, wildlife, tribal and Animal health components will be undertaken by concerned stakeholders at all levels.

Background:

• Snakebite envenoming is a potentially life-threatening disease following the bite of a venomous snake. 
• Venomous snake bites can result in medical issues which can be deadly or lead to permanent impairment if timely and appropriate treatment is not given. 
• The majority of snakebite envenomation deaths and catastrophic sequelae can be avoided with prompt availability to safe and effective antivenoms, timely transport and referral.
• In India, around 50,000 deaths occur of an estimated 3-4 million snakebites annually which accounts for half of all snakebite deaths globally. Only a small proportion of snake bite victims across countries report to the clinics and hospitals and actual burden of snake bite is grossly underreported. 
• In India, around 90% of snakebites are caused by the ‘big four’ among the crawlers – common krait, Indian cobra, Russell’s viper and saw scaled viper. 
• Administration of polyvalent anti-snake venom (ASV) containing antibodies against cobra, Russell’s viper, common krait and saw scaled viper is effective in 80% of the snakebite cases, however, lack of trained human resources and health facilities to treat snakebite patients remains a cause of concern. 
• Also, the unavailability of data on incidence, morbidity, mortality, socio-economic burden, treatment patterns etc. are the major hindrances in planning for mitigation of snakebite in India.

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2013803