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Health units at airports, seaports, and ground crossings will be sensitised, 32 laboratories will be ready along with the health facilities for detecting, isolating, and managing cases of Mpox, health ministry said on Saturday.
The decision regarding the precautionary measures was taken during a review meeting chaired by the Union Health Minister JP Nadda.
A joint monitoring group under the chairmanship of director general of health services Dr Atul Goel said that the risk of a large outbreak in the country remains low but there was a possibility of the infection being imported by travellers.
“Although the possibility of a few imported cases being detected in the coming weeks is not entirely ruled out, it was assessed that the risk of a large outbreak with sustained transmission is presently low for India,” a statement from the Union Health Ministry said.
Since the beginning of 2022, India has recorded 30 cases of Mpox — previously referred to as Monkey Pox — with the last case being recorded in March this year. No cases of Mpox have been recorded in India during the current outbreak, the statement said.
Earlier this week, the World Health Organisation sounded its highest level of alarm for Mpox again — the outbreak between July 2022 and May 2023 was also declared Public Health Emergency of International Concern. While the infections were largely caused by the less deadly clade II Mpox during the previous outbreak, the current concern stems from a faster spreading and deadlier variety.
The current outbreak is largely caused by clade I Mpox, which is now transmitted sexually. While clade I infection is known to be transmitted through close contacts or coming in contact with infected droplets on surfaces, transmission through sexual contact has not been reported earlier.
At least 99,176 cases and 208 deaths due to Mpox have been reported from 116 countries since 2022, according to WHO data.
