National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination

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Recently, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare have jointlyunveiled the National Action Plan for dog Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030. (NAPRE).

All the states and Union Territories have been urged to make rabies a notifiable disease.
A ‘Joint Inter-Ministerial Declaration Support Statement’ was also launched for elimination of dog mediated rabies from India by 2030 through One Health Approach.

Rabies is a vaccine-preventable viral disease which occurs in more than 150 countries and territories.
Dogs are the main source of human rabies deaths, contributing up to 99% of all rabies transmissions to humans.
Infection causes tens of thousands of deaths every year, mainly in Asia and Africa.
Globally rabies causes an estimated cost of US$ 8.6 billion per year
40% of people bitten by suspect rabid animals are children under 15 years of age.
Immediate, thorough wound washing with soap and water after contact with a suspect rabid animal is crucial and can save lives.
Engagement of multiple sectors and One Health collaboration including community education, awareness programmes and vaccination campaigns are critical.
WHO leads the collective “United Against Rabies” to drive progress towards “Zero human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030”.

Zoonotic diseases like Rabies claims the lives of people in their prime denying the family of their earning member.
People in rural areas refer to the disease as ‘Hadakwa’ and was unfamiliar with the English name.
The menace of rabies is such that the mere mention of ‘Hadakwa’ induces terror in rural areas.
Rabies is 100% fatal but 100% vaccine preventable.
33% of global rabies deaths are recorded in India.

Eliminating rabies in dogs: Vaccinating dogs is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people.
Awareness on rabies and preventing dog bites: Education on dog behaviour and bite prevention for both children and adults is an essential extension of a rabies vaccination programme.
Immunizing people: Pre-exposure immunization is recommended for
- people in certain high-risk occupations such as laboratory workers handling live rabies and rabies-related viruses; and
- people (such as animal disease control staff and wildlife rangers) whose professional or personal activities might bring them into direct contact with bats, carnivores, or other mammals that may be infected.