Biological Warfare: Past and Present

Warfare

War is fighting between countries or groups of people involving the use of weapons by  military organization and soldiers. There is always a reason for war, like Economic power, Territorial gain, Religion, Nationalism, Revenge, Civil War, Revolutionary War or Defensive War.

Biological Warfare

In past, the wars were fought in different ways but today it had changed its form.  Biological warfare or a germ warfare exploits biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants in an act of war. Biological weapons are living organisms or replicating entities where any microorganism (such as bacteria, viruses, or fungi) or toxin (poisonous compounds produced by microorganisms) found in nature that can be used to kill or injure people. 

History of Biological Warfare

Way back during the 4^th century Scythian archers infected their arrows by dipping them into decomposing corpse. In the year 1155 water wells were poisoned with human bodies, in 1346 Mongols threw bodies of plague victims over the walls of the city of Caffa, in 1495 the Spanish mixed the blood of leprosy patients to wine and sold it to the French foes, Naples, firing saliva from rabid dogs to distributing infected blankets to spread epidemics like smallpox, cholera, anthrax etc, has been an easy modus operandi of many countries. Biological weapons have been used since 14^th century BC the historical documents hint that the Hittites sent diseased rams to their enemies to weaken them with tularemia, a devastating bacterial infection that remains a potential bioterror.

Biological warfare has been resorted because the historical study of Biological warfare and bioterrorism is made extremely difficult, and any conclusions in this respect must be drawn with caution, because of several concomitant factors: first, the lack of reliable scientific data regarding alleged bioterrorist attacks; second, political manipulations make it difficult to interpret objectively; and thirdly, it may become difficult to differentiate natural epidemics from alleged biological attacks.

Indian Status on Biological Warfare

Our country possesses the capability to produce such agents of biological warfare and has a number of potential delivery systems for this purpose, ranging from crop dusters to sophisticated ballistic missiles. However, India has endosed the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) and pledges to abide by its obligations.

International Status on Biological Warfare

           After World War 1, the use of chemical and biological weapons is banned and the ban has been reinforced in 1972 and 1993 by prohibiting their development, stockpiling and transfer. Advances in science and technology raise concerns that restraints on their use may be ignored or eroded. In past, biological warfare has been practiced repeatedly involving the use of biological agents as well as the bio toxins, derived from them.

In the 19^th century, the use of biological agents took three major forms:

v  Intentional contamination of food and water with poisonous/ contagious material

v  Microbes, biological toxins, plants (living or dead) and animal waste as bio-weapon

v  Biologically inoculated fabrics and persons

In the 20^th century, new bacteriological and virological techniques led to the production of significant stockpiles of weaponized bio-agents:

v  Bacterial agents: Anthrax, Brucella, Tularemia etc.

v  Viral agents: Smallpox, Viral haemorrhagic fevers etc.

v  Toxins: Botulinum, Ricin etc.

Present Status on Biological Warfare

Despite the advances in scientific research on bacteriology, biology and medicine, definitive conclusions regarding the effective use of biological attacks in the history of mankind remain difficult to draw. The lack of microbiological and epidemiological data, the weight of political propaganda and issues about military secrecy make the complications particularly difficult. Long before the scientific revolution of microbiology, that occurred by the end of 19^th century, materials of biological origin were already a striking feature in history, as weapons of mass destruction.

Biological Warfare, as a ‘common aspect of the human behavioural repertoire’, is not a thing of the past, and remains a serious concern, at a local level and at a global level, notably in the light of the recent rise in the use (or possible use) of non-state-sponsored Biological Warfare. It is important to reflect weather in the current scenario of our sustenance, have we become more sensitive than our predecessors, and are we well equipped and ready to face the crises of a future biological war.

Finally, upon the analysis of history related to biological agents and its misuse, we conclude, that the ultimate solution any Biological Warfare and bioterrorism hings on establishing and preserving  strong cultural norms at the individual, social and political level that prohibit the development and use of such weapons. More broadly, although the problem of Biological Warfare is undoubtedly important, it should not cause us to overreact, and obfuscate the reality of real and important preventable infections.