Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda has assured full central support to West Bengal after at least two suspected cases of Nipah virus were detected in the state, triggering the deployment of a National Joint Outbreak Response Team to prevent further spread of the infection .
The suspected cases were identified on January 11 at the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) at AIIMS Kalyani, following which the Union Health Ministry activated national-level emergency protocols.
Soon after receiving information, Nadda contacted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and senior state health officials to coordinate the response. The Union Health and Family Welfare Secretary also held discussions with the state’s Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Health) to review preparedness and ensure rapid containment measures.
A National Joint Outbreak Response Team comprising experts from leading public health and research institutions, including the National Institute of Virology (Pune), National Institute of Epidemiology (Chennai), All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health (Kolkata), AIIMS Kalyani and the Ministry of Environment’s wildlife department, has been deployed in West Bengal to support the state government’s response .
The Public Health Emergency Operations Centre at the National Centre for Disease Control in Delhi has also been activated to coordinate the national response. Central authorities have mobilised laboratory support, enhanced disease surveillance, infection prevention protocols and case management systems across the affected areas .
West Bengal has been advised to work closely with the expert teams and undertake detailed contact tracing, isolation of suspected cases and strict containment measures to prevent human-to-human transmission.
Nipah virus is a zoonotic infection that can spread from animals to humans and between people, and is associated with a high fatality rate, making early detection and rapid containment critical for controlling outbreaks .
