Science fiction

When a study by the reputed medical journal Lancet identified the NDM-1 superbug,caused by the rampant use of antibiotics in Indian surgeries and transplants,Indias medical community was furious. Now,as the journal claims that the bug has crept into public water sources,the government has swept aside the research with even greater force. Accusing the journal of a bid to defame New Delhi by the nomenclature never mind the fact that it is standard practice to tag the place of origin,of motivated methodology,even of having illegally smuggled across samples for study,Indias health officials have stooped to new lows. When confronted with a troubling study about their practices,why is their reflex simply to deny and stick their heads further into the sand? Lancet says that the Indian government actively suppresses the truth by threatening and abusing their own scientists.

The fact that we overdose on antibiotics is no secret doctors prescribe them even for mild infections,pharma hucksters incentivise them,patients demand them imagining themselves insufficiently treated without a full regimen. This blunts the effectiveness,by encouraging mutant microbial strains that can withstand the meds,with dangerous public health consequences. This is not Indias special failing,many countries are guilty of antibiotic overuse and are only just developing stronger regulation. So why would our medical professionals and officials act as though this was a figment of an evil foreign imagination?

If our drug habit has caused a new enzyme that encourages microbial populations to resist treatment,that deserves serious contemplation,and immediate action. If,on the other hand,our government and scientists have a serious foundation to their dismissal of the Lancet study,then they should furnish proof,publish their rebuttal in an equally rigorous forum. Medical research cannot be led by an insecure government establishment that frames it in terms of national pride and insult,or reduces science to a question of clashing stories. Superbugs respect no borders,and ignoring the problem will end up endangering ourselves and the world. We need a responsible government,not one that treats scientists like sock puppets.