NEW DELHI: Snakebite envenoming (SBE) kills one person every five minutes globally, despite being both preventable and treatable, said a global report.
Highlighting that snakebite is one of the world's deadliest yet most overlooked Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), the report said, it represents nearly half of the global burden of all NTDs as it causes up to 1,38,000 deaths and 4,00,000 permanent disabilities every year.
But despite this, snakebite receives only a fraction of the funding it desperately needs, said the report by the Strike Out Snakebite (SOS), a global campaign aimed at raising awareness and mobilising action to reduce deaths and disabilities from snakebite envenoming.
India, which is considered the snakebite capital of the world, reports an estimated 58,000 deaths annually.
According to Dr Nagaraj, Anaesthesiologist, Srinivasa Hospital, Bangalore, who provided insights for the report, India has lost 1.2 million lives to snakebite over the past 20 years.
“India accounts for almost half of global deaths from snakebite envenoming, with 1.2 million lives lost to snakebite over the past 20 years. Unfortunately, I see the real-world impact of this every day in my hospital, including how snakebite exposes the inequities in our health systems,” he told this paper.
The report also said that SBE is a crisis of inequality, where access to treatment is a privilege, not a right.
“It disproportionately affects agricultural workers and rural communities – people at the heart of industries such as farming, mining, and infrastructure. From the coffee we drink to the clothes we wear, the crisis of SBE is being experienced by the very people who grow, farm or supply so many aspects of our everyday life,” said the report, which was released to mark World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day 2026.
Quoting Dr Nagaraj, the report said, “Most patients who suffer snake bites are impoverished farm labourers. Snakes don’t go to corporate offices and bite.”
In 2024, India declared snakebite a notifiable disease to reduce the burden, as the country accounts for nearly 50 per cent of global snakebite deaths. India is home to over 300 snake species, of which 15-17 per cent are venomous. The ‘Big Four’ snakes - the Indian cobra, common krait, Russell's viper and saw-scaled viper – are considered the species responsible for the majority of snakebite envenoming in India.
"No doctor wants to watch a patient suffer needlessly. We urgently need more action and investment to change this story, and I urge the global community to act now to help Strike Out Snakebite,” said Dr Nagaraj, who also appeared in a short film - Snakebite: from Science to Survival - released alongwith the report.
Urging the global community to address the failings in health systems by integrating SBE into national health strategies, the report said the need is to modernise health infrastructure, strengthen antivenom regulation, expand community education, and close critical gaps in access to prevention and treatment.
Elhadj As Sy, Chancellor of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Co-Chair of the Global Snakebite Taskforce, said: “Snakebite must no longer be overlooked or underfunded by the international community. It is time for action - not sympathy, not statements, but action worthy of the scale of this crisis.”
The report recommended strengthening antivenom R&D and expanding affordable, high‑quality manufacturing; improving data, monitoring, and protective equipment; improving training programmes and clinical guidelines for healthcare professionals; and increasing access to safe, effective antivenom.
It also suggested increasing collaboration between governments, NGOs, and local health systems; improving access to healthcare facilities; improving healthcare system infrastructure; and scaling community education.
The report suggested that integrating snakebite prevention and treatment into national health plans will strengthen health systems and save lives.
Alongside this, investing in education, awareness programs, and preventative measures will empower communities with the knowledge and tools they need to reduce risk and respond effectively when bites occur.
SOS was launched in 2025 to drive action across four fronts: R&D, antivenom access, public health, and advocacy – aligned with WHO’s goal to halve deaths and disabilities by 2030.