ABSTRACT
Infectious diseases remain a major cause of human and animal morbidity and mortality leading to significant healthcare expenditure. However, enormous successes have been obtained against the control of major epidemic diseases, such as malaria, plague, leprosy and cholera, in the past. The vast terrains and extreme geo-climatic differences and uneven population distribution present unique patterns of distribution of viral diseases. Dynamic interplay of biological, socio-cultural and ecological factors, together with novel aspects of human-animal interphase, pose additional challenges with respect to the emergence of infectious diseases. The important challenges faced in the control and prevention of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases range from understanding the impact of factors that are necessary for the emergence, to development of strengthened surveillance systems that can mitigate human suffering and death. Viral pathogens are known to cause outbreaks that have epidemic and pandemic potential which would result in severe range of mortality and Health care expenditure on a scale depending on the pathogenicity of the virus. © 2020, Institute of Medico-Legal Publications. All rights reserved.