NE states need to work towards collecting data on snakebites

The North East of India is one of the most bio-diverse regions in the country and home to a large variety of flora and fauna, including snakes. The region has about 130 species of snakes, both venomous and non-venomous. However, the data on snakebites and snake-bite deaths are discouraging.

Data on snakebites and snake-bite deaths help in many ways, such as identifying venomous snakes and their habitats, identifying the high-risk areas, developing anti-venoms, and improving healthcare, awareness and public health policies.

“The data that we have so far is minuscule. One of the reasons for little or no data about snakebite deaths is the lack of awareness (about treatment), leading to low numbers of reported cases of snakebites. One way of getting data is from hospitals and health centres. But that is not happening,” said Dr Jayaditya Purkayastha, researcher and herpetologist.

Also, there is only a handful of herpetologists who are working in the North East than in the Western Ghats, said Purkayastha.

There are other reasons why data collection has been poor in the region, where the bio-diversity and a large section of the agrarian population lead to constant man-reptile conflict. According to a 2023 study, an estimated 10,000 snakebite cases are reported in the region annually.

Purkayastha has been taking initiatives to raise awareness about snakes, rescues and the importance of data collection. In a workshop in Kaziranga last month, he emphasised that all snake rescuers must submit all information about the species rescued so that the information can be used in crafting policies.

Several private snake rescuers from across Assam and forest rangers attended the workshop, which was in collaboration with the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust (MCBT)/Centre for Herpetology.

“We do not have any understanding about how data is being collected in the North East. We don’t know how many are arriving in the hospitals and what kind of treatment these hospitals provide. This could be for two reasons — lack of awareness and lack of (medical) facilities. So, it is difficult to say what kind of gap exists in the data collection,” said Gnaneswar Ch, project lead at MCBT.

He pointed out that a national study on snakebite deaths showed ‘zero’ death in some northeastern states but “that cannot be true”.

Purkayastha said he conducts frequent workshops and awareness programmes but points out a practical problem in making these programmes inclusive. “The North East has so many tribes and their languages and dialects. It becomes difficult to create awareness brochures in every language. This is one challenge that we often face,” he added.

Decades of insurgency problems also discouraged researchers from exploring the remote areas in the North East.

Concerted efforts by the Centre, states and experts are needed to bridge the gap in data from the region. Two states in the North East — Meghalaya and Tripura — have already declared snakebite as a notifiable disease following a central notification. This will lead to better healthcare facilities, more reported cases and a data pool.

“The hospitals and healthcare centres are the primary sources of data. They should have a statistician to collate the data. Community healthcare workers can also be utilised with cases which are not reported,” said Gnaneswar.

Assam is in the process of making a comprehensive action plan to check snakebite deaths and collect data. The National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NAPSE) by the Centre will also help in data collection in all the states.

The gap can also be addressed by capacity building for healthcare workers and epidemiologists. “The Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) is also important in data collection and it is important to know how the programme functions,” said Gnaneswar.

Jose Louies from the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), has developed an Android app called the Big4 Mapper app that “helps conservationists and herpetologists map out the distribution of snakes and incidents of bites reported in the country”, reported Mongabay India. The project is an initiative of the Indian Snakebite Initiative.

According to Gnaneswar, MCBT is helping in capacity building in the northeastern states and is yet to focus on data collection. “We hope that we can work with the volunteers here to reach out to the community level,” he added.

While data collection about snakebites remains an important task at hand for respective states in the North East, it is also imperative for the states in the region to spread awareness on snakes, both venomous and non-venomous, among citizens. This will help people identify and avoid potential habitats of snakes reducing conflict. It will also stop unwarranted killings of the reptiles, which are already the victims of urbanisation and deforestation.