Some SOPs for Anthrax

With reports of mysterious substances in letters reported from Delhi, Chennai and Kerala, the postal department is on an alert and is scrutinising all foreign mail closely. The Delhi-based National Institute of Communicable Diseases (nicd) is already testing four suspicious letters, including one delivered at the Apollo Hospital. The results are not out yet although officials say that most of these cases could be hoaxes.

But it has been enough to put the government on its toes. Prime Minister Vajpayee's principal scientific advisor, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, has been asked to assess the level of preparedness. The home ministry has taken charge as the nodal agency for chalking out a strategy to combat bio-terrorism along with the health department and defence establishments specialising in nuclear, chemical and biological war.

Together, the ministries of defence, home and health have been entrusted the task of handling any crisis situation. The three ministries, in consultation with state governments, are formulating a standard operating procedure (sop). Delhi is the first state that has decided to have three crisis management centres. Given its strategic importance, the state is also imparting special training to its medical staff.

A week after the September 11 attacks, a two-day national meet to discuss biological warfare was organised in New Delhi in which experts nicd, the Indian Council of Medical Research, leading defence research labs and representatives from all states and armed forces deployed along the borders discussed the Indian scenario. The draft for developing a surveillance mechanism for pathogens having potential of biological warfare was finalised at the meeting.

The experts pointed out that metros and big urban conglomerates would be likely targets for bio-terrorism. The mode of attack could vary from release of infected aerosols in the air to contamination of food and water through pathogens and toxins.

The defence ministry too is gearing up. The Defence Research and Development Organisation and the Defence Research and Development Establishment facility at Gwalior have been actively engaged for the past two decades in developing a defence system for fighting biological and chemical warfare. The two organisations, which have so far trained the army, are currently working on a five-day intensive training course for doctors and policemen.

However, doubts about Indian preparedness in tackling bio-terrorism persist. The cause of Surat plague outbreak in 1994 is still a mystery. Some scientists in fact doubt if the disease that resulted in many deaths and a mass exodus from Surat was plague at all. Then again, deaths of 40-odd people by an unknown epidemic in Siliguri early this year has confounded Indian research agencies. The virus causing the deaths has not been identified specifically and does not match any other reported viruses in the country.

The government is now reviewing both the disease outbreaks to isolate any bio-warfare strain in them. Says Thakur: "We still don't exactly know about the Siliguri deaths. The samples of virus were sent to the Centre for Disease Control, Atlanta which identified it as a modification of the measles vaccine virus."