India’s official rabies death count is tiny. The real toll is thousands higher. Here is why the numbers disagree.

The government’s disease surveillance system recorded just 54 rabies deaths in 2024. A separate death-registration system counted 271 in 2023. But a large ICMR study estimated about 5,726 Indians die of rabies every year.

The gap has three causes. First, the surveillance system only counts cases that reach its network. Many bite victims never visit a health facility. Second, the death-registration system covers only medically certified deaths, about 22% of all registered deaths. Third, the ICMR figure is a modelled estimate, not a headcount. It came from surveying 3,37,808 people in 78,807 households across 60 districts.

The study also found India sees about 9.1 million animal bites a year, mostly from dogs. Older estimates put deaths at 20,000 a year, so the new figure is actually lower.

Rabies is fully preventable with timely vaccination. India aims to end dog-mediated rabies by 2030. But with 1.5 crore stray dogs, vaccinating and sterilising them all costs about Rs 1,500 per dog, a huge bill for local bodies.