Toddler suffers cobra bite in Pune district, snakebite reporting rules in focus

The recent instance of a toddler suffering a cobra bite in Pune district has spurred renewed calls for declaring snakebite a notifiable disease in Maharashtra.

Last week, the two-and-a-half-year-old girl was sleeping beside her farmer father on the floor of their small home at Mahalunge Padwal village when a cobra bit her. The terrified parents rushed her to the Vighnahar Nursing Home, which is about 15 km away from their village, as her body had turned cold and she had dilated pupils. While aggressive anti-snake venom treatment was initiated, the little girl suffered three cardiac arrests and had to be resuscitated each time.

Talking about the incident, Dr Sadanand Raut, Founder, Vighnahar Nursing Home, who has saved more than 12,000 snakebite victims, said it was “deeply frustrating” that Maharashtra has still not declared snakebite cases and deaths a notifiable disease despite reminders from the Centre.

30 vials of anti-snake venom

“The little girl had no palpable pulse, no audible heart sounds, and had stopped breathing,” Dr Raut recalled. Along with Dr Pallavi Raut, they initiated advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The child was intubated and placed on mechanical ventilation.

“During the next 90 minutes, she suffered three cardiac arrests and each time had to be resuscitated,” Dr Raut added.

An expert emergency team started aggressive antivenom treatment, and 30 vials of anti-snake venom were administered over 20-30 minutes. Within 24 hours, the girl regained consciousness and was weaned off the ventilator. “She is being treated for aspiration pneumonia, but her overall neurological recovery has been good,” Dr Raut observed.

Maharashtra reports 1.29 lakh snakebite cases

The Maharashtra health department has registered 1.29 lakh snakebite cases and 656 resultant deaths over a three-year period from April 2023 to March 2026. There were 48,711 snakebite cases and 146 deaths in 2023-24, while there were 38,491 snakebite cases and 282 deaths in 2024-25. In 2025-26, there were 42,268 snakebite cases and 228 deaths.

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In November 2024, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued a directive to states to mandatorily notify snakebite cases and deaths. This is required to strengthen snakebite surveillance and help gauge the accurate burden. On January 29 this year, a reminder was sent to all states to identify high-burden districts and declare snakebite cases and deaths as a notifiable disease.

According to an expert, several states, including Kerala, Odisha, Assam, Karnataka, and Jharkhand, have already declared snakebite a notifiable disease.

“Snakebite has emerged as a serious and growing public health concern in Ambegaon taluka and several other rural parts of Pune district. Every year, many farmers, agricultural workers, and members of tribal communities lose their lives due to snakebite incidents. The problem becomes particularly acute during the monsoon season, when cases rise sharply, and many preventable deaths occur,” Dr Raut further said.

When contacted, state health department officials said that the process to make snakebite a notifiable disease was underway.