New Delhi: The Union health ministry has sent a multidisciplinary national outbreak response team to Gujarat and Rajasthan to assist state authorities in dealing with the Chandipura virus outbreak, as public health agencies step up surveillance, laboratory testing and vector-control measures in the two states.
The deployment comes amid fresh concern over viral encephalitis cases reported during the monsoon season.
Rising Toll In Two States
In Gujarat, health officials have reported 35 confirmed positive cases among 184 suspected patients tested, along with 22 deaths of children under 15 during the current season.
Rajasthan has also reported three positive Chandipura virus cases from the border districts of Dungarpur and Sirohi, with all three infected children referred to Gujarat for emergency treatment; two later died there, according to reports.
The National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT), comprising experts from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), will support state governments in outbreak investigation, epidemiological assessment, clinical management, laboratory coordination, vector surveillance and containment efforts.
The NCDC Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) has also been activated to back field operations.
Focus On Transmission
Scientists and health officials are continuing to study how the virus is spreading. While sandflies are known vectors, researchers are examining whether other arthropods such as mosquitoes, ticks and mites may also be involved. Animal surveillance has also been widened, with blood and milk samples collected from livestock to check for evidence of circulation, as reported by Mint.
Dr Aashish Chaudhry, managing director at Aakash Healthcare, said, “The deployment of a response team is a timely and welcome step, but the long-term solution lies in strengthening surveillance and prevention at the community level. AES, including infections caused by Chandipura virus, progresses rapidly, leaving a narrow window for intervention. We need robust early warning systems, syndromic surveillance, rapid diagnostic capabilities, trained frontline healthcare workers, and community awareness to identify symptoms before they become life-threatening.”
“Equally important are sustained vector control measures, environmental sanitation, and coordinated public health action. Preventing outbreaks is always more effective than responding after lives are at risk,” he added.
Genome Probe Underway
The ministry has said it is premature to pin down the vector behind the current outbreak until scientific investigations are complete. It has also said whole-genome sequencing of clinical samples is underway at the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC), Gandhinagar, and that preliminary analysis has shown minor genetic variations. However, more detailed comparative studies are needed before any conclusion can be drawn on whether the circulating virus has evolved from earlier outbreak strains., as reported by Mint
The investigation is also being backed by a network of 15 tertiary hospitals that track encephalitis cases, under a One Health system that studies people, animals and vectors together.