India on alert over Ebola, health minister Nadda reviews preparedness

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday stepped up Ebola surveillance and reviewed nationwide preparedness measures as the outbreak in Central Africa continued to expand, prompting heightened global concern.

Health minister J.P. Nadda chaired a high-level review meeting with senior officials and directed authorities to keep screening, tracking and testing systems on high alert, even as the government said no Ebola case has been reported in India so far.

Nadda also asked the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to keep tracking, testing and surveillance systems in a constant state of readiness.

The stepped-up surveillance comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) flagged a sharp rise in international transmission linked to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Africa.

"The Ebola screening arrangements at all Points of Entry across the country, including airports, seaports, and land border crossings, must remain fully vigilant and robust,” the health ministry said in a statement. “No case of Ebola has been reported in the country so far; however, all preparedness measures are being strengthened as a precautionary step.”

The current Ebola outbreak is driven by the Bundibugyo strain, for which no approved vaccines or treatments exist. According to the WHO, the outbreak has resulted in 746 suspected cases and 176 deaths so far.

The WHO has designated the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, while the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has classified it as a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security.

The latest review builds on earlier measures taken by Indian health authorities. Mint had previously reported that the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) issued a travel advisory focused on passengers arriving from high-risk countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan.

In an earlier meeting chaired by the health secretary, detailed standard operating procedures (SOPs) were shared with states and Union Territories to ensure uniform preparedness. The SOPs covered pre-arrival and post-arrival tracking, isolation protocols and clinical management measures.

Following those directions, major transit hubs, including Indira Gandhi International Airport, updated travel protocols to include non-contact thermal screening and health self-declaration requirements for inbound passengers.

Senior health officials urged citizens to remain calm, saying the domestic risk remains low and pointing to India’s experience in implementing containment protocols during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa.