New Delhi: Identifying resource crunch as the biggest obstacle in combating avian influenza, India on Tuesday asked the international community to look at low-cost options to fight the pandemic.

"The World Bank has projected that for a reasonable level of preparedness for avian and human influenza, developing countries would need to spend at least $ 2.2 billion over two to three years period," Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, Anbumani Ramadoss, said at the inaugural session of the inter-ministerial conference on Avian and Pandemic Influenza here.

The current gap for mobilising resources for the country programmes is $ 960 million, or over 40 per cent of the identified needs. From earlier conferences, $ 649 million is available to help fill this gap, he said.

"But these resources are in the form of loans, while grants would be a more appropriate form for financing this global public good," Ramadoss said. While this gap must be minimised, I would urge that we need to look at low cost options also," the minister said, adding empowerment of the communities has emerged as the most powerful tool in preparing them to combat the pandemic and all countries and organisations should focus on this aspect.

Asserting that India has clearly defined action plans for both animal and human health, he said there was a need for capacity building for a sustained response to the disease.

 

Source : PTI