India denies 5 Nipah virus cases in West Bengal

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of India has denied media reports that there were five cases of the Nipah virus in the state of West Bengal, stressing that so far only two cases have been officially confirmed.

The Ministry said that there were speculative and inaccurate figures related to the Nipah Virus disease (NiVD) in a number of media.

Based on the report received from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), only two confirmed cases have been reported in West Bengal since December last year to date.

The ministry emphasized that the central government and state governments had taken all necessary public health measures in the affected areas, including tightening epidemiological surveillance and increasing laboratory examination capacity.

A total of 196 people who have close contact with the two confirmed patients have been successfully identified, traced, monitored, and undergone health checks.

"Until now, all contacts who have been traced have shown no symptoms and their test results are negative for the Nipah virus," the ministry said, quoted by ANTARA from Sputnik, Wednesday, January 28.

Indian health authorities also urged the public to only rely on official and verified information from the government regarding the development of the Nipah virus.

"No additional cases of Nipah Virus have been detected so far," the ministry said in a statement.

The clarification was made following a report in the Independent newspaper last week that Indian authorities were trying to contain a deadly Nipah virus outbreak that is suspected to have infected five people, while about 100 others were quarantined.

The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies the Nipah virus as one of the most dangerous viruses in the world, with a high death rate and so far no specific treatment or vaccine.

Nipah virus is mainly transmitted by fruit bats or fruit bats, with transmission to humans generally occurring through the consumption of fruit or food products contaminated with the saliva of infected animals. Transmission can also occur through domestic animals.

India has previously reported four outbreaks of Nipah virus, in West Bengal in 2001 and 2007, and in the State of Kerala in 2018 and 2019, prompting the government to raise national vigilance against the zoonotic disease.