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NEW DELHI: With 35 laboratory-confirmed Chandipura virus infections and 22 deaths among 184 suspected cases reported in children under 15 across Gujarat this monsoon, and the virus also affecting children from neighbouring Rajasthan, the Centre on Wednesday deployed a National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) to strengthen outbreak investigations and accelerate scientific efforts to contain the disease.Chandipura virus, a sandfly-borne virus that primarily affects children, can rapidly progress from fever to acute encephalitis syndrome (AES), a severe brain infection. While sandflies are the established vector, scientists are investigating whether mosquitoes, ticks or mites may also be involved in the current outbreak.The virus is not new to India. First identified in Chandipura village in Maharashtra in 1965, it has caused periodic outbreaks of acute encephalitis among children in states such as Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, particularly during the monsoon.The multidisciplinary team, comprising experts from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), will support state authorities in outbreak investigation, epidemiological assessment, laboratory coordination, clinical management and vector surveillance. The NCDC’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre has also been activated to coordinate the response.Rajasthan has stepped up surveillance after children from the state, including a two-year-old girl, tested positive for Chandipura virus while undergoing treatment in Gujarat. The cross-border cases prompted the Centre to include Rajasthan in its coordinated response.The deployment comes amid one of the country’s most extensive scientific investigations into Chandipura virus in recent years, involving multiple ICMR institutes, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC). Scientists are trying to answer key questions about the virus’s transmission, clinical spectrum and evolution while generating evidence to guide public health measures.Surveillance has been intensified among patients with acute febrile illness (AFI) and acute encephalitis syndrome, while community serosurveys are underway to estimate the extent of asymptomatic infections. Researchers are also analysing samples from sandflies, mosquitoes, ticks and mites to identify the vector responsible for the current outbreak.
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At the same time, blood and milk samples from cattle, buffaloes and goats are being tested to determine whether domestic animals could act as virus reservoirs.Around 70 animal blood samples have been collected so far and are being analysed for Chandipura virus and other relevant pathogens.Scientists are also carrying out whole-genome sequencing of virus samples to determine whether the circulating strain has undergone genetic changes. Officials said findings from the investigation, together with data generated through India’s hospital-based Acute Encephalitis Syndrome surveillance network, will strengthen outbreak detection, improve understanding of the disease and support evidence-based public health interventions.
