THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Forest and health departments are all set to join hands in developing snake antivenom within the state, Forest Minister A K Saseendran said on Wednesday.
With the intensity of snake venom varying from place to place, indigenously developed antivenoms could serve the need more effectively than those currently purchased from other states.
He also added that the state aims to have zero snake bite deaths by 2030, highlighting the state’s reduced share in the total snake bite deaths in India. The minister was inaugurating the World Snake Day programme at the Forest headquarters here.
As per statistics, nearly 82,000 snake bite deaths happen across the world, half of which take place in India. Kerala was able to successfully reduce its share in these numbers, with the death toll dropping from 119 in 2019 to 30 in 2024.
“This reduction is due to the constant vigil maintained by the forest department,” the minister said in his inaugural address, emphasising the role played by the app developed by the forest department, SARPA, in it.
The inaugural ceremony, which was presided over by principal chief conservator Rajesh Raveendran, was attended by additional principal chief forest conservators P Pugazhendi, L Chandrasekhar, Justin Mohan and George P Mathachan.
“SARPA app has become a milestone in public health, by making remarkable interventions to reduce snake-bite deaths,” said chief wildlife warden Pramod G Krishnan in his session on ‘Snake Bite: Death-Free Kerala Initiative & Mission Sarpa’.