National experts to aid surveillance, vector tracing and clinical management as monsoon-linked encephalitis outbreak spreads among children
The Union Health Ministry has dispatched a National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) to Gujarat and Rajasthan to bolster containment efforts against the Chandipura Virus Disease (CHPV) outbreak, which has killed at least 22 children in Gujarat this monsoon season. The move comes alongside intensified surveillance, scientific probes and expanded testing across affected districts, the ministry said Wednesday.
Chandipura virus, an emerging arbovirus spread mainly by sandflies, causes acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) and predominantly affects children under 15. The deployed team draws experts from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, who will assist state authorities with epidemiological assessment, clinical care coordination, laboratory support and vector tracking.
Disease monitoring continues under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, with the NCDC’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre activated to back the response. Authorities are investigating whether insects beyond sandflies, such as mosquitoes, ticks or mites, could be involved in transmission, while analysing numerous vector samples collected from affected regions.
Animal surveillance has also widened, with blood and milk samples from cattle, buffaloes and goats , roughly 70 samples so far being tested to check whether domestic animals serve as viral reservoirs. Officials cautioned that findings on both vector and animal transmission remain preliminary pending completed lab analysis.
About The Author
