Mystery over Covid-19 origin can have colossal consequences for Bio-safety, Bio-security: Parl panel to Centre

The parliamentary standing committee on Health and Family Welfare has strongly advised the government to consider its diplomacy in appealing to the community of nations to conduct studies to identify the origin of Covid-19, as it could have catastrophic consequences for global bio-safety and bio-security.

The department-related parliamentary standing committee made this recommendation in its 137th report on “Vaccine Development, Distribution Management and Mitigation of Pandemic Covid-19.” The report said, “There is still lack of concrete evidence on whether the corona virus reached humans via a laboratory incident. Nevertheless, the Committee understands that if the origin of corona virus is allowed to remain a mystery, it will have colossal consequences over Bio-safety and Bio-security of the world. The Committee, therefore, strongly recommends the Government to reckon its diplomacy to appeal to the comity of nations to conduct more studies to identify the origin of Covid-19 and penalize the culprits at the International platform.”

The committee’s recommendations and observations on the origins of the SARS-CoV-2-virus are that identification of the true source of the virus is crucial for establishment of new zoonotic reservoirs to avoid future reinfections and diseases in humans and animals. “The Committee observes that the origin of the virus still remains obscure and more studies need to be conducted to shed light on the origins of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The Committee strongly believes that identification of the true source of the virus is crucial for establishment of new zoonotic reservoirs so that future reinfections and diseases in animals as well as humans are prevented.”

The Committee has further said that identifying novel pathogens and faster detection is also important. “Large scale fatalities and the devastating impact of Covid-19 pandemic necessitate the need of being better prepared for possible future outbreaks viz the menace and management of Monkeypox. The Committee strongly believes that it is incumbent upon global scientists to accelerate its efforts in identifying novel pathogens and establish a robust surveillance mechanism for faster detection of the pathogens.”

“The Committee accordingly recommends the Ministry to develop a healthcare framework in the country for investigating and managing future outbreaks more effectively. In this regard, the Committee strongly believes that the recently constituted Task Force Team led by Dr VK Paul will track the Monkeypox situation and provide guidance to the Government on the expansion of diagnostic facilities in the country and combat the menace of Monkeypox,” the report said.

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