NEW DELHI: India bears the highest burden of snakebite deaths globally, driven by high snake density, vast rural populations, and widespread reliance on traditional healers, according to the latest global report.The report said that India reports an estimated 58,000 deaths annually, but the impact is severe among poor and indigenous communities, where access to quality healthcare remains limited.“Delays in treatment due to faith in traditional medicine; lack of quality control among some domestic antivenom producers; and high out-of-pocket costs, especially in informal care settings,” said the report, ‘Time to Bite Back: Catalyzing a Global Response to Snakebite Envenoming,’ which was released at the recently concluded 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva by Global Snakebite Taskforce, the strategic arm of the Strike Out Snakebite – a global campaign aimed at raising awareness and mobilising action to reduce deaths and disabilities from snakebite envenoming.The report, which highlights the critical need for action against the ‘devastating and preventable human toll of snakebite envenoming,’ said India has launched and is implementing a National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming.However, the report, which tracks progress towards the WHO target of halving deaths and disabilities from snakebite envenoming by 2030 and calls on the global community to accelerate action, said that despite India’s progress, challenges persist.
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