ICMR Adopts Demow Model for National Snakebite Prevention

Syllabus: GS2/Health

Context

• The Demow Model from eastern Assam’s Sivasagar has been chosen as one of the successful systems of snakebite prevention and management under a project sanctioned by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
  • The project, called the Zero Snakebite Death Initiative: Community Empowerment and Engagement for Mitigation of Snakebite Envenoming.

Snakebite Envenoming 

• The snakebite envenoming (poisoning from snake bites) was classified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a high-priority neglected tropical disease.
• An estimated 1.8 – 2.7 million people worldwide are envenomed annually. 
• Snake Bites in India: In India, around 90% of snake bites are caused by the ‘big four’ among the crawlers – common krait, Indian cobra, Russell’s viper and saw scaled viper.  
  • In India, around 58,000 deaths occur of an estimated 3-4 million snake bites annually.
  • Snakebite deaths are more common (48%) during the southwest monsoon (June-September).
  • Close to 70% of snakebite deaths occur in nine states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
• India has more than 310 species of snakes. Of these, 66 are labelled venomous or mildly venomous.
  • The ‘Big Four’ were considered responsible for most venomous bites in the country, but newer studies show other species also contribute to the snakebite burden, particularly in the Northeast.

Source: TH