Parliament Question: Snakebite as Notifiable Disease

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5890 TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.03.2026 Snakebite as Notifiable Disease 5890. DR. PRABHA MALLIKARJUN: Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state: (a) the number of States/Union Territories that have declared snakebite cases and deaths as a notifiable disease under their respective public health laws pursuant to the recent advisory issued by the Central Government; (b) the number of snakebite-related deaths reported in various States/Union Territories during the last five years and the current year, year-wise; (c) whether the Government has undertaken any assessment/study of the increasing incidence of human-snake conflict in forest fringe and rural areas and its linkage with habitat loss, climate variability and ecological imbalance; (d) whether any guidelines or programmes have been implemented under wildlife conservation frameworks, including the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 to balance conservation of snake species with public safety; and (e) the steps proposed to strengthen inter-ministerial coordination to reduce snakebite fatalities while ensuring ecological protection of reptile species? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH) (a) & (b) As per the information available with this Ministry, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued a communication to all States and Union Territories, advising them to notify snakebite as a notifiable disease under the respective State Public Health Acts and other applicable legislation. Based on the information received, eight States namely Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Kerala, Maharashtra, and Odisha, have so far declared snakebite cases and deaths as notifiable. Snakebite related cases and deaths are reported by States and Union Territories under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) through the Integrated Health Information Portal (IHIP). The details of snakebite related deaths reported across various States and Union Territories during the period 2023–2025 are provided in Annexure-I. (c) to (e) The protection and management of wildlife is primarily the responsibility of the respective State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. In accordance with the provisions of Section 33 of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, this Ministry has issued guidelines for management planning of protected areas and other landscape elements.The Ministry has also released species-specific guidelines on 21.03.2023 for mitigating human-wildlife conflict, including those involving snakes, adopting a harmonious coexistence approach. Additionally, guidelines addressing cross- cutting issues such as engagement with media, occupational health and safety in conflict mitigation, crowd management, and management of health emergencies arising from human-wildlife conflict have been issued. Further, an advisory on dealing with human-wildlife conflict has been issued by the Ministry on 06.02.2021. The advisory recommends coordinated interdepartmental action, identification of conflict hotspots, adherence to Standard Operating Procedures, establishment of rapid response teams, and formation of State and district level committees to review and expedite the disbursement of ex- gratia relief. In line with the global target to halve deaths due to snakebite by 2030, the National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NAPSE) has been developed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in consultation with relevant Ministries and stakeholders. *****Annexure-I Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) & (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 5890 due for reply on 30.03.2026 regarding “Snakebite as Notifiable Disease” Snakebite cases and deaths (2023–2025) as reported by States and Union Territories (UTs) through the IDSP–IHIP platform SN States Snakebite Death (2023-2025) 2023 2024 2025 Andaman & 1 0 0 0 Nicobar Islands Andhra 2 6 41 12 Pradesh Arunachal 3 0 0 0 Pradesh 4 Assam 4 15 13 5 Bihar 10 3 3 6 Chandigarh 0 0 0 7 Chhattisgarh 2 5 4 8 Delhi 0 0 0 9 Goa 0 0 0 10 Gujarat 4 4 16 11 Haryana 0 0 0 Himachal 12 0 1 0 Pradesh Jammu And 13 13 16 8 Kashmir 14 Jharkhand 16 22 27 15 Karnataka 19 101 157 16 Kerala 0 1 3 17 Ladakh 0 0 0 18 Lakshadweep 0 0 0 Madhya 19 12 12 27 Pradesh 20 Maharashtra 2 7 25 21 Manipur 0 0 0 22 Meghalaya 0 1 1 23 Mizoram 0 1 0 24 Nagaland 0 0 0 25 Odisha 29 31 24 26 Puducherry 0 0 0 27 Punjab 0 0 0 28 Rajasthan 0 2 1 29 Sikkim 1 0 0 30 Tamil Nadu 43 25 27 31 Telangana 0 0 0 32 DDNH 0 0 0 33 Tripura 0 0 0 34 Uttar Pradesh 1 12 18 35 Uttarakhand 0 1 2 36 West Bengal 21 69 63 Total 183 370 431