Kuala Lumpur: Warning that the fight against the virulent SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) epidemic was far from over and other new diseases will continue to threaten the future, a senior WHO (World Health Organisation) official on June 18 said India should spend more on public health infrastructure and improve its infection control measures to fight such diseases.

"Whereas India has a good network of surveillance, when it comes to isolation wards, case containment at the health facility India needs to improve a lot," Dr N Kumara Rai, director, World Health Organisation for South-East Asia, said on the sidelines of WHO Global Conference on SARS near Kuala Lumpur.

Besides, it has to also improve infection control system, he said.

Based on the purchasing power parity ideally, Rai said governments should spend about $ 60 to $ 80 per capita on public health, but India currently spends half of it.

Calling for improving public health infrastructure especially at village and district levels, he said it is important to have equitable distribution of human resources.

India needs to regulate medical system otherwise, there will be a two-tier medical system one for the rich and other for the poor, he said.

"Strengthening public health system is extremely urgent as when there is an outbreak people have to depend on the public health system which is only in the government sector not in the private sector. Private sector is mainly for clinical management of the cases not for prevention and promotion," Sudarshan Kumari, regional advisor on laboratories, WHO, India said.

PTI