When fear takes wing

Fortunately, the investigation of all the three recent deaths in Turkey indicate that these children were living in close proximity with poultry and there is still no evidence that the disease has begun to spread between humans. However, there is also no evidence to suggest that all the 20-25 cases being diagnosed for bird flu involve contact with poultry.

Turkey lies on the migration path of wild birds suspected of spreading the flu westwards from Asia. It’s premature to draw any firm conclusions but the facts thus far are: all known 142 cases of human bird flu have been reported in East Asia. Most have been isolated cases in families. About fifty per cent of those infected have died. For countries like India, which lies in close proximity of ‘high risk’ countries like Indonesia, Thailand, China and Myanmar, WHO has warned that the bird-flu pandemic threat is very real.

Today, India is in a more comfortable situation to tackle this threat. This is mainly because of the strength of the Indian pharmaceutical industry. The Swiss firm Roche has licensed an Indian company to make a generic version of its anti-bird flu treatment, Tamiflu, for India and other developing countries. This puts a burden on India to assume regional leadership, particularly when the entire region is suspected to be the most vulnerable in terms of the spread of this disease. Indian authorities claim they have a contingency plan in place and they will procure anti-viral drugs as soon as human-to-human transmission is reported anywhere in the world.

During the recent tsunami and earthquake in Kashmir, India proved its capacities of handling inter regional disasters. The bird flu disaster could prove to be even more challenging. Timely investment in preventive mechanisms can profoundly shape the future of the region.