Mumbai, July 1 (IANS) Maharashtra Public Health Minister Prakash Abitkar on Wednesday announced in the Legislative Assembly that the department will send a proposal to the Law and Judiciary Department to officially declare snakebites a “Notified Disease” in the state in order to ensure effective countermeasures against snakebites.

Additionally, a joint meeting involving the Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation, the Forest Department and relevant agencies will be convened to establish regional ‘Snake Venom Banks’. National experts will be invited to help draft a strategic policy.

The Minister also assured that, as per standard guidelines, Primary Health Centres (PHCs) across the state maintain an adequate stock of anti-snake venom (ASV), the minister said during his reply to a calling attention motion moved by Vikram Pachpute, who highlighted the rising mortality rate from snakebites and emphasised the need to upgrade anti-venom vaccines.

Pachpute noted that while four major types of venomous snakes are found in the state, a single polyvalent anti-venom is administered regardless of the species.

“The venoms vary drastically — haemotoxic, neurotoxic and cytotoxic — yet a single polyvalent vaccine is manufactured for all three. Furthermore, snake species change across geographies; a cobra found in Chennai differs from a cobra in Maharashtra. We need customised vaccines for regional venoms. Currently, Maharashtra only uses vaccines derived from Chennai snake venom. Can we establish regional venom banks and explore manufacturing monovalent vaccines instead of polyvalent ones?” Pachpute questioned.

He also asked if snakebite could be declared a “natural disaster”.

MLA Shweta Mahale added that farmers, agricultural labourers and rural residents are the primary victims of snakebites. She claimed that rural hospitals often face a shortage of anti-venom stocks and demanded a dedicated policy for snakebite prevention.

In response, Minister Abitkar stated that anti-venom vaccines are available at all PHCs. He mentioned that the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is actively working on developing species-specific vaccines.

“We have developed Anti-Snake Venom Kits that help determine whether a snake bite is venomous or non-venomous. Identifying the specific snake type will allow for highly targeted treatment,” he said.

MLA Arjun Khotkar urged the government to also address the serious health issues caused by poisonous insect bites in the state.

MLA Jayant Patil pointed out that a severe lack of funds at the Haffkine Corporation has brought the production of polio and anti-snake venom vaccines to a complete standstill.

Addressing this, Abitkar promised that a meeting would be held within the next eight days to clear the necessary funds and resolve the crisis.

–IANS

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