Parliament Question: Antibiotic Resistant

GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE LOK SABHA UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 3664 TOBE ANSWERED ON13.03.2026 ANTIBIOTICRESISTANT 3664.DR. RAJ KUMAR CHABBEWAL: Willthe MINISTEROFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFAREbe pleased tostate:- (a) whether the Government is aware that as per a recent WHO report, one in six bacterial infections globally in 2023 was antibiotic-resistant and that India has one of the highest resistance ratesandif so, the details thereofandif not,the reasons therefor; and (b) whether the Government is taking any measures to spread awareness and prevent the Proliferation of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in the country, if so, the details thereof and if not,the reasons therefor? ANSWER THE MINISTER OFSTATEIN THE MINISTRYOFHEALTH& FAMILYWELFARE (SHRIPRATAPRAO JADHAV) (a) & (b): The Government is aware of the growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which is prevalent and increasing across more than 100 countries worldwide and affects all regions. The issue is being addressed through a comprehensive, multi-sectoral approach under the National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance 2.0, aligned with the WHO Global Action Plan on AMR. The Government has undertaken a number of strategic and coordinated measures across sectors to address this challenge. The details of the steps takenare placedat Annexure. *****ANNEXURE Details of steps taken by Government to contain AMR as mentioned in part (a) & (b) of thereply areasunder: 1. Standard Treatment Guidelines (STGs) have been issued by Ministry of Health and FamilyWelfare, Government of India andthe same are availableinpublic domainand canbeaccessed athttps://ncdc.mohfw.gov.in/guidelines-resources/. 2. Government has issued Guidelines on Infection Prevention and Control which aim at prevention and control of healthcare associated infections to reduce the use of antibioticsinhealthcaresettings. 3. Standard Treatment Guidelines have also been prescribed under various National HealthPrograms. 4. The Government of India through Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) regulates safety, efficacy and quality of the drugs under the provisions of Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940 & its rules. Antibiotics have beenincluded in Schedule H and H1 of the Drugs and Cosmetic Rules and are required to be sold by retail only underthe prescription ofaRegistered Medical Practitioner. 5. States have also been advised to ensure prescription of generic drugs and conduct regularprescriptionauditsinpublic healthfacilities. 6. Practice of prescription audit is one of the prerequisites for getting certified under the National QualityAssurance Standards(NQAS). 7. To promote judicious use of antibiotics and to create awareness about AMR, NCDC has developed media material including audios, videos, social media messages and Outdoor Media which are available in public domain and also shared with States/UTs for further dissemination. Media materials are also available at https://ncdc.mohfw.gov.in/iec-on-amr/. 8. Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) has undertaken several research initiatives including AMR network comprising 21 tertiary care hospitals. An Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS) implementation project has also been initiated in these 21 hospitals, all of which have developed their own antibiotic policies. ICMR funds atotalof51research projectsspanning basic, clinicalandappliedresearchalong withs mallandintermittentgrants. 9. ICMR released guidelines on Infection control in hospitals in 2016 to facilitate hospitals to develop infection control program which are available at https://www.icmr.nic.in/sites/default/files/guidelines/Hospital_Infection_control_guid elines.pdf. *****