MoHFW outlines steps to strengthen preparedness against emerging infectious diseases
Union Health Ministry says India is using surveillance, laboratory networks and outbreak drills to improve early detection and response to emerging infectious diseases.
- The Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme is India’s core surveillance platform for outbreak-prone communicable diseases.
- The Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories network provides nationwide diagnostic support for infectious disease detection.
- Genomic surveillance helps public health authorities characterise pathogens and support outbreak response.
- Wastewater surveillance can help detect pathogens of public health importance at an early stage.
What happened
The Union Health Ministry has said that India is strengthening preparedness against emerging infectious diseases through surveillance systems, laboratory networks, genomic tools, wastewater surveillance, and outbreak-response drills. The ministry linked this preparedness to the National Centre for Disease Control, the Indian Council of Medical Research, and the Pradhan Mantri - Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission.
Background and earlier position
UPSC can frame the topic around India’s disease-surveillance architecture, the role of the National Centre for Disease Control, the Indian Council of Medical Research network, Centre-State coordination during outbreaks, and the link between health infrastructure and early warning systems for emerging infectious diseases.
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