NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India, worried about possible biological attacks by terrorists, has provided its states with a list of pathogens and asked hospitals to stock adequate antidotes, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
Health officials were concerned about biological attacks following the death of a man in Florida from anthrax and at least two others testing positive for exposure, the Indian Express said. (Read photo caption below)
Anthrax, once a disease of farm animals, is spread by spores. Without quick antibiotic treatment, more than 80 percent of people who become ill after inhaling the spores will die.
Health ministry officials were not immediately available for comment but India's Home (interior) Minister Lal Krishna Advani last week warned security officials of possible terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction including chemical and biological weapons.
The anthrax scare in the United States follows last month's plane attacks on the New York and Washington which killed about 5,600 people.
The al Qaeda militant group of Washington's prime suspect, Osama bin Laden, said on Tuesday the attacks would continue in a ``battle'' that would not end until the United States withdraws from Muslim lands.
PHOTO CAPTION:
FBI investigators in protective gear on October 10, 2001 searched for the source of the anthrax that killed a Florida man while the case sparked growing fears over possible biological attacks in a country where nerves are already frayed after last month's anti-U.S. attacks. (Reuters Graphic)
- Oct 10 9:04 PM ET