|
New Delhi: In South
Asia, one of the world's most densely populated regions, deadly
diseases from animals, like the nipah virus, brucellosis, anthrax
and even avian flu, cross international boundaries with ease.
A fruit bat on the India-Bangladesh border could spread the deadly
nipah virus when it licks the juice of the date palm tree being
collected by farmers. Likewise, cattle grazing in grasslands
spanning borders could carry with them spores of the anthrax
disease, or the ticks on them could spread brucellosis. According
to experts, zoonotic diseases, transmitted from animals to humans,
are able to cross international borders in South Asia due to the
porous borders, poor awareness and surveillance mechanisms coupled
with high density of population.
Among the diseases spread by animals in South Asia are the plague,
scrub typhus, leptospirosis and avian flu. Brucellosis causes
abortions in bovines, and sheep and goat. In humans, the fever can
be confused with typhoid.
"In South Asia, borders are porous; humans cross over and along
with them bring pathogens. We are tropical countries where the
human-animal interface is very, very intense," Manish Kakkar,
senior public health specialist, Public Health Foundation of India
(PHFI), told IANS.
Kakkar said in South Asia, there is a lot of unorganised backyard
animal and poultry farming. "Humans and animals come into close
contact in these farms. There is poor knowledge of hygienic
practices; bio safety standards are not up to the mark; and there
is every likelihood of pathogens crossing the borders."
"With its poverty, high population, poor safety practices, it
makes the South Asia region a hot spot for zoonotic diseases,"
said Kakkar, on the sidelines of a meeting on zoonotic diseases
organized by One Health Alliance of South Asia (OHASA) attended by
delegates from India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan.
India saw its first outbreak of nipah virus - which affects the
neurological and respiratory system and can cause death - in
Siliguri in West Bengal in 2000. The saliva and urine of the fruit
bats - which were unwitting hosts to the nipah virus -
contaminated the date palm juice collected by farmers, thereby
spreading the virus to humans, said Jonathan H. Epstein, a disease
ecologist.
The H1N1 or avian flu virus in wild birds finds its way to
backyard poultry farms located next to jungles. "Poultry farmers
trade the chickens even if they fall sick, and these infect others
as well as the humans handling them," Epstein, EcoHealth
Alliance's associate vice president and member of OHASA Steering
Committee, told IANS.
According to Epstein, the increasing population has led to people
moving closer to jungles and intruding into wildlife areas,
thereby increasing the chances of catching such infections. Also
the growing demand for protein has increased the man-animal
interaction.
"Half of the infections afflicting humans come from animals," said
the expert, adding that many of the infections are emerging or new
ones like the West Nile virus, spread by the mosquito.
Japanese encephalitis is transmitted by mosquitoes to humans and
affects a large number of people in India every year. However, the
actual host to the killer virus are pigs and birds, from which it
is transmitted to mosquitoes.
Kakkar and Epstein maintain that to tackle zoonotic diseases in
South Asia, the veterinary and wildlife authorities need to be on
board along with health officials.
"We need to synergise collaboration between the veterinary, human
and wildlife sectors,' says Kakkar.
In villages situated next to national parks, many cow grazers take
their animals inside the parks to graze, which in turn leads to
animals catching the anthrax spores from deer or bison and pass
them on to humans.
According to Kakkar, besides human encroachment, climate change is
another reason for the spread of zoonotic disease as animals
migrate to newer areas more conducive to them. The illegal trade
in wildlife also helps spread the disease.
"There is need for inter-sectoral coordination, which needs to
translate to action. Otherwise we can't be effective in tackling
the spread of zoonotic diseases. It needs a lot of collaboration
between countries of the South Asia region," maintains Kakkar.
(Ranjana Narayan can be contacted at ranjana.n@ians.in)
|
Comments
|
Quick links