War against Zika virus India ready to win

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, JP Nadda, on Friday held a meeting with senior officials from the Health Ministry and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to firm up India's response to deal with the situation. According to health experts, mosquitoes Even before dengue season starts, the government already has another mosquito-related anxiety to worry about.concern this time is the Zika virus which is spreading explosively across north and south America. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the virus can also affect countries like India.and their breeding sites pose a significant risk factor for the spread of Zika virus infection. Prevention and control relies on reducing mosquitoes through source reduction (removal and modification of breeding sites) and reducing contact between mosquitoes and people. It is also important to empty, clean or



cover containers that can hold water such as buckets, flower pots or tyres, so that places where mosquitoes can breed are removed. Health Ministry on Friday also decided to form a technical group to monitor the situation arising out of spread of Zika virus and strengthen its surveillance system. "We are closely monitoring the situation and all necessary steps have been initiated to ensure that India is well prepared in case of any eventuality. We are focusing on especially strengthening the surveillance system," Nadda said. Such is the level of alarm that many Latin American countries like El Salvador, Colombia and Ecuador have urged women to postpone pregnancy till 2018. According to sources, the Union Health Ministry has also recently called health experts from the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme and National Centre for Disease Control to closely look at the virus trend and chalk out plans to avert the virus.