India says it has contained Nipah virus outbreak as some Asian countries ramp up health screenings

NEW DELHI– Indian authorities said they had contained an outbreak of the Nipah virus after confirming two cases in the eastern state of West Bengal, as several Asian countries stepped up health checks and airport surveillance for travelers arriving from India.

India’s health ministry said on Tuesday that two cases of Nipah had been detected since December and that all identified contacts had been quarantined and tested. The ministry did not release details about the patients, but said 196 contacts had been traced and all had tested negative.

“The situation is under constant monitoring and all necessary public health measures are in place,” the ministry said.

Nipah, a zoonotic virus first identified during an outbreak in the 1990s in Malaysia, is spread by fruit bats, pigs and human-to-human contact. There is no vaccine against the virus, which can cause high fevers, seizures and vomiting. The only treatment is supportive care to control complications and keep patients comfortable.

The virus has an estimated mortality rate of between 40 and 75%, according to the WHO, making it far more deadly than the coronavirus.

No cases of the virus have been reported outside India, but several Asian countries have introduced or strengthened screening measures at airports as a precaution.

Indonesia and Thailand have stepped up controls at major airports, with health declarations, temperature checks and visual surveillance of arriving passengers. Thailand’s Department of Disease Control said thermal scanners have been installed at the arrival gates of direct flights from West Bengal at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Myanmar’s health ministry has advised against all non-essential travel to West Bengal and urged travelers to seek immediate medical attention if symptoms appear within 14 days of travel. It said fever surveillance introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic at airports has been intensified for passengers arriving from India, with laboratory testing capabilities and medical supplies ready.

Vietnam’s Health Ministry on Tuesday urged strict food safety practices and ordered local authorities to increase surveillance at border crossings, health facilities and communities, according to state media.

China said it was strengthening disease prevention measures in border areas. State media reported that health authorities had started assessing risks and improved training of medical staff, while increasing surveillance and testing capabilities.

Previous outbreaks of Nipah were reported in West Bengal in 2001 and 2007, while recent cases have been widely detected in southern Kerala state. A major outbreak in 2018 killed at least 17 people in Kerala.

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Associated Press journalists from across Asia contributed to this report.