Issues and Challenges for Epidemic Diseases Act of India, 1897: A Literature Review

The current pandemic of COVID-19 has brought forth issues salient to the epidemic diseases act of India, 1897 like ambiguous terminology, lack of defined criteria for its application, and dearth of features regarding adequate response to threats arising due to communicable diseases for public health. The public health law has an important role in the control of communicable diseases. Constraining individual rights is inherent to public health law which necessitates striking a balance between the coercive aspect of public health law and the common good. Adhering to ethical principles relevant to public health law and valid limitations on human rights as per international covenants is imperative for public health law. A tabular summary of articles published about the epidemic diseases act, of 1897 highlights the need for urgent reform in the legislation. Suggestions to achieve congruence between the epidemic diseases act of India, 1897, and ethical principles for public health law are provided.