AFMC plans research centre to tackle bio terrorism

Pune, February 5 It takes only 50 kg of aerosolised anthrax to kill one lakh people and in the hands of terrorists, biological agents ranging from anthrax, small pox virus and others can be fatal. Realising the imminent danger posed by these biological weapons, the Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC) will soon have its own centre for research on bio terrorism.

Lt Gen Saibal Mukherjee, director general, medical services, army acknowledged that there was a need to be prepared for any kind of attacks and announced the plans to set up two centres for research on bioterrorism in the armed forces. AFMC would be one nodal centre and other is Army Hospital (Referral and Research), New Delhi.

He was chairing a session on bio terrorism by the Dr D T Mourya, deputy director, National Institute of Virology and the Microbial Containment Complex during the 56th annual Armed Forces Medical Conference that commenced on Tuesday. Lt Gen Yogendra Singh, director general of Armed Forces Medical Services inaugurated the conference including the meeting of the 46th Armed Forces Medical Research Committee at the AFMC.

Biological agents are preferred by terrorists as they are easy to acquire and does not cost much. Even blood sucking arthropods and the chikungunya virus can be agents in bioterrorism, Mourya said underlining the need for a country to be prepared with a good biosecurity programme. “We need a good infectious diseases surveillance programme,” Mourya stressed.

Lt Gen Mukherjee too averred that a bio terrorism attack was one where there was a deliberate release of viruses, bacteria or other germs which were used to cause illness or death in people, animals or plants. The scientists painted a grim picture of the re-emerging infectious diseases and said that an outbreak in any part of the world was only few hours away from being an imminent threat somewhere else. There were 2.1 billion airline passengers in 2006 and with biological agents present in the country there is a need to set up diagnostic facilities and maintain a level of preparedness for identification of these viruses.

Earlier Lt Gen Yogendra Singh said that during the conference a lot of important health policy issues will be deliberated. He assured delegates that their recommendations would be accepted and implemented. He called for intensive efforts to make Medical Journal Armed Forces India one of the best professional journals in the country.