Prof. Ajay Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India chaired a brainstorming session on December 2nd, 2024 to explore opportunities for collaborations with some of the key organizations working in the field of One Health in India.

 

The session focused on strengthening India's efforts to build integrated disease control and pandemic preparedness by bringing together human, animal, and environmental sectors with a vision to coordinate, support, and integrate the activities in the country as part of the National One Health Mission.

The session involved an overview of the activities under National One Health Mission. The Mission aims to implement a comprehensive and effective One Health strategy across India, tailored to specific regional needs by leveraging resources effectively, enhancing capacity building at national and state levels, and promoting knowledge sharing through the exchange of best practices and innovative models. The meeting was attended by key multilateral agencies and NGOs who presented their work in different aspects of One health such as zoonosis, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and capacity building in human, livestock and wildlife sectors.

Prof. Sood emphasized the importance of collaboration with all the stakeholders to further strengthen the mission, and suggested a deeper mapping exercise of all the ongoing activities to identify synergies.

Dr VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog spoke about the need for investing in R&D, which is critical for both AMR and pandemic preparedness. He also emphasized the need for an increased focus on the wildlife and livestock sectors. Dr Rajiv Bahl, Director General, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Secretary, Department of Health Research (DHR) emphasized the value of understanding how other countries are tackling these issues and the opportunity for cross-learning that can be facilitated through the multilateral agencies.

The meeting was joined by Dr. Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of PSA, Dr. Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology (DBT) , and senior officials from Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Ministry of AYUSH, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Department of Science and Technology (DST), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), National Institute of One Health (NIOH), World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), United National Development Programme-India (UNDP-India), World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynaecology and Obstetrics (JHPIEGO), Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), Brooke India, International Union for the conservation of Nature (IUCN), Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the UK Government.

 

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