1974 smallpox epidemic in India

Disease outbreak in India thumb|Map of India with states. January 2023 July 2019 The 1974 smallpox epidemic in India infected 188,000 people, leading to the deaths of 31,000 Indians.Lahariya Chandrakant 2014 A brief history of vaccines & vaccination in India The Indian Journal of Medical Research 139 4 491–511 0975-9174 4078488 24927336 The media reported the smallpox epidemic as the most severe of its kind.7 June 1974 India Rushes Health Teams Into Smallpox Epidemic Zone 9 The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/1974/06/07/archives/india-rushes-health-teams-into-smallpox-epidemic-zone.html 7 November 2022 However, the claim is debatable due to improvements in reporting since the epidemics of 1875 and 1967.Brilliant Lawrence B. The management of smallpox eradication in India 1985 University of Michigan Press 0-472-10059-9 Ann Arbor 11599679 The 1974 epidemic occurred during the country’s intensified campaign against the virus, which saw a shift in strategy from mass vaccinations to search and containment.Dutta Mahendra Basu R.N. 2011 Lessons from smallpox eradication campaign in Bihar state and in India https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0264410X11019128 Vaccine en 29 D19–D21 10.1016/j.vaccine.2011.12.001 22486977 subscription The year prior, vaccination programs and improved vaccination techniques, along with surveillance and investigation strategies, reduced smallpox transmission in most of the country except for a few states, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. The epidemic persisted in these regions in January and lasted until summer for several reasons. Smallpox was difficult to eradicate in rural, poor areas with inferior transportation and communications.October 1979 Global Effort Pays Off... Smallpox at Target "Zero" https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/29542/cdc_29542_DS1.pdf 7 November 2022 Dateline: Center for Disease Control During the Indian smallpox eradication campaign, over 80% of the population lived in remote areas, creating logistical issues for vaccine delivery.How India overcame smallpox https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/how-india-overcame-smallpox 2024-12-05 www.gavi.org en Bihar and Uttar Pradesh accounted for approximately three-quarters of global smallpox cases in 1974. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported 103,830 infections throughout India in January 1974, which was 20% higher than the total number of cases the year before.6 October 1974 30,000 Killed in India in Smallpox Epidemic A4 Los Angeles Times https://www.latimes.com/archives In March, new cases were discovered in Madhya Pradesh, an area previously cleared of smallpox imported from Bihar. By May, cases reached a record of 48,833. Within one week in May, 11,000 new cases and 8600 imminent outbreaks were discovered in Bihar, resulting in one case each minute. An outbreak in southern Bihar in May traced back to Tata Group labourers, instigated vaccinations of railway workers and road closures to prevent further spread.Henderson Donald A. Smallpox : the death of a disease : the inside story of eradicating a worldwide killer 2009 Prometheus Books 978-1-59102-722-5 Amherst, N.Y. 314597839 Nevertheless, 300 more outbreaks and 2,000 cases swept into 11 states. A month later, the WHO estimated 75,000 infections in Bihar.5 June 1974 10,000 Die in India Smallpox Epidemic https://ajc.newspapers.com/article/the-atlanta-constitution-10000-die-in-i/183389625/ 7 November 2022 The Atlanta Constitution 1C The monsoon season stifled human interactions and, combined with increased containment activities, caused smallpox cases to decrease. __TOC__ Local and international response thumb|left|Example of smallpox infection on patient's feet. thumb|Key members of the WHO smallpox eradication team. thumb|Logo of the Indian Ministry of Health. Collaboration between national and international governments, non-governmental agencies, and the private sector was a critical factor in the success of the response to the epidemic in India. In 1973, the national smallpox eradication program entered an intensified phase.Brimnes Niels 2010 Review of Expunging Variola: The Control and Eradication of Smallpox in India 1 947-77 New Perspectives in South Asian History, vol. 14 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40664928 Modern Asian Studies 44 3 663–666 40664928 0026-749X In January 1974, the Indian campaign’s funds were dwindling. Financial support was acquired when the WHO re-directed funds China rejected to the Indian smallpox program. The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) provided more aid ($14 million). The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) contributed trained administrators to help manage the increasing number of project staff and the complicated system of daily expenditures and infrastructure requirements. The efforts to tackle the epidemic included private-public partnerships. The Tata Group ran a steel plant in Bihar, responsible for spreading smallpox to other states. They provided medical workers, administrative support, and transportation and communications infrastructure. In June, the WHO's India smallpox staff, with the secretary of health and the director-general, created an emergency strategy for the nation: an increase in international epidemiologists, training of Indian junior medical officers, creation of central surveillance units, shifting resources from malaria projects to smallpox eradication, drastically increasing the number of containment teams, use of helicopters, vaccination checkpoints, and the acquisition of 375 vehicles and gasoline, finances for travelling healthcare workers, and funds for field equipment and supplies. The successful eradication of smallpox in India was an exceptional public health achievement. However, the WHO's Smallpox Eradication Programme (SEP) has been accused of violating individual civil rights through forced vaccinations and quarantine policies, particularly among Adivasi tribal groups.Juran Luke Trivedi Jennifer N Kolivras Korine 2017 Considering the "public" in public health: popular resistance to the Smallpox Eradication Programme in India http://ijme.in/articles/considering-the-public-in-public-health-popular-resistance-to-the-smallpox-eradication-programme-in-india/?galley=html Indian Journal of Medical Ethics 2 2 104–111 10.20529/IJME.2017.025 28512076 subscription free Ultimately, the response that led to smallpox eradication in India was a significant accomplishment for the scientific and humanitarian fields.Horton Richard 2021-12-19 Offline: The lessons of smallpox eradication for COVID-19 Lancet 396 10267 1951 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32713-6 1474-547X 7832049 33341128 Importantly, it also resulted in a strengthened healthcare system, trained healthcare workers, infrastructure for vaccine delivery, and an effective disease surveillance network. In 2008, William Foege, a former US CDC director, and Mahendra Dutta, a former Health Commissioner of New Delhi, recalled response efforts facing heightened scrutiny because of India's first successful nuclear bomb detonation in May 1974, as part of Operation Smiling Buddha.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc6RzIlxjKg 2017.300.15 Dutta & Foege 16 March 2017 Global Health Chronicles Videotape David J. Sencer CDC Museum Foreign press argued that if India was incapable of eradicating smallpox, its government could not be trusted to responsibly develop nuclear weapons.Naraindas Harish December 2003 Crisis, Charisma and Triage: Extirpating the Pox http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/001946460304000403 Indian Economic and Social History Review en 40 4 425–457 10.1177/001946460304000403 145416917 0019-4646 Sage Journals subscription References Smallpox Epidemic In India, 1974 Category:1974 disease outbreaks Category:1970s epidemics Category:1970s in Bihar Category:1970s in Uttar Pradesh Category:Epidemics in India Category:Disasters in Bihar Category:Smallpox eradication Category:Smallpox epidemics