The Fifth Meeting of the Scientific Steering Committee on One Health was held on May 18, 2026, at Kartavya Bhavan 3 under the chairmanship of Prof. Ajay K. Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.

The meeting witnessed participation from senior representatives across multiple ministries, departments, and scientific agencies, including Indian Council of Medical Research, National Centre for Disease Control, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Department of Biotechnology, Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Department of Pharmaceuticals, and National Institute for One Health.

Among the key participants were Dr. Rajiv Bahl, Secretary, Department of Health Research and Director General of ICMR; Dr. Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser; Dr. M. Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences; and Dr. Ranjan Das, Director of NCDC.

At the outset, Prof. Sood appreciated the continued commitment of stakeholder ministries and departments toward advancing the One Health approach and highlighted the growing importance of inter-sectoral coordination amid emerging outbreaks and public health threats.

Discussions during the meeting focused on strengthening India’s preparedness against zoonotic diseases and climate-sensitive health challenges through improved coordination, integrated surveillance, and long-term planning. 

The Committee reviewed key achievements under the National One Health Mission over the past year, including the development of a Model Governance Framework for States and Union Territories, initiation of genomics and metagenomics-based surveillance networks, and surveillance initiatives at the human-animal-environment interface in locations such as zoos, bird sanctuaries, and slaughterhouses.

Updates were presented by the Chairs and Member Secretaries of various Advisory and Review Committee work streams, including BSL-3/4 Laboratories chaired by Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Dr. Madhuri Kanitkar, Technology-Enhanced Surveillance chaired by Dr. N.K. Arora, Data Integration and Data Sharing chaired by Dr. Vijay Chandru, and Medical Countermeasures chaired by Dr. Renu Swarup and presented by Dr. Nivedita Gupta from ICMR.