India Screened 10,974 Travellers for Ebola; No Cases Detected, Centre Tells Parliament

New Delhi: India has screened 10,974 international travellers arriving from Ebola-affected countries since May 23, following the World Health Organization's (WHO) declaration of the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). No case of Ebola has been detected in the country so far, the Centre informed Parliament on Friday.

In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Union Health Minister J P Nadda said that surveillance and preparedness measures were intensified across the country after the WHO declaration. These include enhanced screening at airports and all entry points, mandatory travel declarations, designated isolation facilities, expanded laboratory capacity, and nationwide mock drills to handle any suspected case.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said all international passengers are screened for recent travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan — the countries affected by the current Ebola outbreak. The government has not imposed a blanket travel ban. Instead, passengers with a travel history to these countries in the previous 21 days are identified through Self Declaration Forms, including the Air Suvidha 2.0 portal.

Among airports, Mumbai recorded the highest number of screened passengers at 7,568, followed by Delhi (1,833), Hyderabad (532), Chennai (210), Bengaluru (205), and Ahmedabad (200). At the state level, Gujarat screened the maximum number of passengers (2,905), followed by Maharashtra (2,228), Uttar Pradesh (785), Tamil Nadu (731), Telangana (624), and Kerala (554).

The preparedness measures include issuing standard operating procedures covering surveillance, quarantine, laboratory testing, infection prevention, and clinical management. The government has also identified and operationalised isolation facilities across states and Union Territories, expanded diagnostic capacity through ICMR-NIV Pune and additional Biosafety Level-3 laboratories, deployed additional doctors and paramedical staff at major international airports, and conducted mock drills in designated hospitals nationwide.

The response is being coordinated by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, among other agencies. A 24×7 national helpline has been activated, along with a public awareness campaign involving airport displays, in-flight announcements, and social media. The NCDC’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre has been activated to coordinate the response.

According to the health ministry, no Ebola case has been reported in India so far. The government continues to monitor the situation and adjust its preparedness measures based on the evolving global outbreak.