Current Affairs 2021: Importance and Relevance of One Health Concept

By Teresa Dhar

Recently 'One Health' Consortium was conducted in India under the leadership of Dr Renu Swarup. Get here details about the concept and its relevance.

'One Health' is a concept used at a meeting of the Wildlife Conservation Society in 2004 while laying down a succession of deliberated goals (‘Manhattan Principles’).  The ‘Manhattan Principles’ acknowledged the connexion between human and animal health and subsequently, the menace that contagious zoonotic diseases posed to the food chain and supplies, economies and the overall ecosystem (especially when they break the barrier of being transmitted from animals to humans). One Health harps on the interconnection between the health of people, animals, and the overall environment. The Domino effect is applicable here – the maintenance of one will have an inevitable impact on others. Following the effect, the concept pushes for the cooperation of all three segments to attain the best possible result.

These principles were of high importance and identified the significance of a cross-disciplinary approach embedded in collaboration to respond to budding zoonotic infectious diseases stemming from animals. They cover designing and executing programmes, research and policies in which different sectors intercommunicate and collaborate to achieve better public health outcomes. More importantly, these principles incorporate wildlife health and productivity as an integral aspect in preventing, alleviating and monitoring any prospective global disease.

First ‘One Health’ Consortium in India

Through a virtual video conference on October 14th, 2021, Dr Renu Swarup, Secretary of the Department of Biotechnology (under the aegis of the Ministry of Science and Technology) inaugurated the first ‘One Health’ consortium and inducted an International mini-symposium on "Essentials of One Health". The consortium contemplates carrying out observation and monitoring of significant viral, bacterial and parasitic infections of zoonotic and transboundary pathogens within the country.

The DBT, through an official statement, has stated that the consortium has also mapped out delving into the use of prevailing diagnostic tests and the development of additional methodologies for monitoring and understanding the proliferation of emerging diseases.

In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, the DBT intends to pursue a more holistic approach in the implementation of ‘One Health’ principles in the governance of contagious diseases and make significant attempts to prevent and contain zoonotic diseases globally. Dr Swarup highlighted this holistic approach to comprehend the human, animal and wildlife health & their well-being and accordingly, curtail any damage caused by other prospective pandemics.

Dr Swarup stated that the ‘One Health Consortium’ consisting of 27 organisations led by DBT-National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, Hyderabad (NIAB), is one of the largest health programmes initiated by the government in post-pandemic times. NIAB is an autonomous institute established under the DPT and Ministry of Science and Technology. It engages in research and development pertaining to livestock and other animal health-related issues. It develops advanced biotechnologies to enhance animal health and productivity.

The consortium included AIIMS (Delhi and Jodhpur), Assam Agricultural University, MAFSU (Nagpur), TANUVAS (Chennai), IVRI (Bareilly), GADVASU (Ludhiana), Veterinary University and other ICAR, ICMR centres and wildlife organizations.

Relevance of One Health Consortium

There was an urgent need for the Department of Biotechnology to host a symposium on ‘One Health’. The necessity for ‘One Heath’ Consortium is amplified at the time when the world is inflicted by an animal-borne virus. The menace imposed by such infectious viruses capable of jumping the barriers of species has increased. Such diseases like COVID-19 have disturbing repercussions on human and animal life, global health systems and economies, which lead to a tremendous loss in terms of finances, health, education, commerce etc. Therefore, demanding years of holistic recovery to bring back normalcy.

The World Health Organization (WHO) in partnership with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) engages in promoting “multi-sectoral responses to food safety hazards, risks from zoonoses, and other public health threats at the human-animal-ecosystem interface” and establishing guidelines on how to mitigate such hazards.

Every possible information on bacteria, viruses, drug-resistant microbes and other organisms (which can be communicated through direct contact, between animals and humans or through contaminated food) is essential for the collection of viruses to make human vaccines for latent pandemics. Such data will also assist in developing and producing vaccines and cures for such virus-induced pandemics. It may also help in successfully curtailing or eliminating such viruses if they pose a threat to humans. In the natural ecosystem, since humans and animals co-exist, there must exist a symbiotic relationship to effectively deal with the problem. 

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In the COVID-19 times, the study of virology has never seemed more important especially when the threat of future pandemics loom large. The past couple of years have shown the insufficiency of present researches available and the inadequacy of humans to tackle such viruses. Research and development of zoonotic viruses and vaccines is the need of the hour. For that, the well-being of humans, flora and fauna must be guaranteed.

Image Source: cdc.gov.

About the Author:

Teresa Dhar is a 5^th Year law student at Chanakya National Law University.