Stories
India Urges Global Action on Resilient Health Systems, Pandemic Preparedness at UN
- •Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava represented India at the UN high-level meeting on ‘Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response’, emphasizing international cooperation for global health security.
- •Srivastava highlighted India's comprehensive approach to pandemic response, including expanding laboratory networks, health workforce, and clinical care capacity, rooted in national health systems and domestic financing.
- •She advocated for digital public infrastructure as a global public good, citing its crucial role in surveillance, vaccination, and supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- •India supplied 300 million vaccine doses to nearly 100 countries and provided medical aid to over 150 nations during COVID-19, demonstrating its commitment to ‘One Earth, One Health’ and the Global South.
- •Srivastava stressed that the credibility of the WHO Pandemic Agreement depends on a fair Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system, ensuring timely access to essential health products for countries contributing pathogens.
Key Questions Answered
Representing India at the United Nations, Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava reaffirmed India's commitment to global health security by stressing the need for sustained investment, institutional capacity, and resilient health systems. She outlined India's coordinated, whole-of-government approach encompassing expanded laboratory networks, emergency coordination, and clinical care capacity rooted in national development plans.
Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava highlighted that digital solutions played a vital role in surveillance, vaccination tracking, risk communication, managing supply chains, and ensuring the continuity of health services. Consequently, India called for digital public infrastructure to be recognized globally as a public good.
India described the WHO Pandemic Agreement adopted in May 2025 as an important milestone, emphasizing that its credibility depends on a fair Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system. India asserted that nations contributing biological resources must receive timely access to vaccines, diagnostics, and technologies while respecting national sovereignty, and noted that political declarations should not prejudge ongoing PABS negotiations.
