- May 18, 2026
India On Alert As Ebola Declared Global Health Emergency: Labs Activated, Screening Intensified
Last Updated:
. On average, about 30 to 40 out of every 100 people who catch Ebola from this strain die from it.
isolation and quarantine facilities at major airports and ports have been identified and made ready.
The Indian government is closely monitoring an Ebola outbreak in Central Africa after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, the senior official at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare told News18.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, has been reported in parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
According to the ministry’s source, a high-level meeting of top officers from the National Centre for Disease Control, the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has reviewed the situation and initiated precautionary measures.
“There are no reported Ebola cases in India and the current risk to the country remains minimal,” a senior Health Ministry official clarified. “However, surveillance and preparedness measures are being strengthened at points of entry as a precautionary step.”
Key measures include a review of standard operating procedures for screening, surveillance, quarantine and case management. Also, the National Institute of Virology in Pune has been designated as the nodal laboratory for Ebola testing, with additional laboratories to be onboarded in phases.
In an important move, isolation and quarantine facilities at major airports and ports have been identified and made ready. “Coordination with relevant ministries and agencies to monitor international travel from affected regions has also been enhanced.”
“We urged the public not to panic or spread unverified information, asserting that India’s public health system remains vigilant and fully prepared to respond to any emerging situation,” the official said.
Ebola Outbreak
Ebola was first identified in 1976 in Africa, near a river of the same name. It belongs to a family of viruses called filoviruses. Six species of ebolavirus are known, though only four are known to cause illness in humans. Three — Zaire, Sudan, and Bundibugyo — are responsible for nearly all major outbreaks.
The latest outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus. On average, about 30 to 40 out of every 100 people who catch Ebola from this strain die from it. Unlike COVID, Ebola does not spread through the air. You cannot catch it from someone coughing on a bus or sneezing in a lift. It spreads through direct physical contact with the body fluids — blood, vomit, saliva, diarrhoea, semen — of an infected person, or with surfaces and objects contaminated with these fluids.
Read More
