It Is Time India Takes Lead In Realising ‘One Earth, One Health’ Vision: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya

New Delhi: It is time India takes the lead in realising the “one earth, one health” vision with a holistic policy-making environment and align it with the philosophy of “vasudhaiva kutumbakam”, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Wednesday (March 15). Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has a strong political will to lead in innovative research and technology supported solutions which are commercially viable with universal acceptability, he said at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Partnership Summit 2023.

The summit has been themed “One Health: Integrated, Collaborative and Multisectoral Approach to Optimal Health”.

The ‘one earth, one health’ vision can become a reality only with active global collaboration where countries don’t think of only themselves but of collective global outcomes, the minister said.

Also Read: India Bats For Equitable Healthcare Access In Its G20 Presidency

Minister Mandaviya highlighted that the health sector cannot be limited to one country as the health and wellbeing of one country impacts the other.

We live in an inter-dependent world, wherein not just countries but the health of human population is equally affected and influenced by the health of surrounding environment and animals, he stated.

The global pandemic has demonstrated that no country is immune from adverse developments in any country, and also that our actions impact the health and wellbeing of our eco-system.

It is therefore our collective responsibility as a human race to not only protect ourselves but also ensure that our actions result in protecting the environment we co-exist in, he stressed.

The vision of “one earth, one health” brings in sharp focus the importance of our actions and eco-friendly policies, he elaborated.

Applauding India’s leading role in indigenous research and wealth of traditional therapies, Minister Mandaviya highlighted that each country can have its own model of achieving the vision.

It is, however, important to learn from each other’s best practices to enrich our models and work in synergy with each other to ensure that collective actions leave behind a healthier world than the one we inhabit, he stated.

Lauding the progress of initiatives such as Ayushman Bharat and the success of Co-Win platform that is now shared as a public digital good, Minister Mandaviya emphasised that health is perceived as “seva” — service to others.

The minister also affirmed his confidence in the research institutions of the nation and urged the participation and involvement of the academia and the private sector to contribute to research.

Also Read: Way India’s Pharma Sector Gained Trust During COVID-19 Was Unprecedented: PM Narendra Modi

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.