India issues travel advisory as WHO declares Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of international concern | Today’s news

On May 17, the World Health Organization officially declared the Ebola outbreak spreading across the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern, triggering a cascade of international responses that now includes a travel advisory from the Indian government. An outbreak caused by a rare strain of the Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment, has killed 204 of 867 suspected cases in three provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, making it the second largest Ebola outbreak in recorded history after the 2014 to 2016 West African epidemic.

India issues travel advisory for DRC, Uganda and South Sudan

The Indian government has advised all Indian citizens to avoid essential travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan until further notice, a press release issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said. Indian citizens currently residing in or traveling to these countries are advised to strictly follow the public health guidelines issued by the local authorities and observe increased precautions.

India has not reported any cases of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo virus strain. The Africa CDC also announced a partnership with India to deliver roughly 20 tons of medical supplies to affected areas by Monday.

What is the Bundibugyo tribe and why is it so dangerous

Ebola is a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by infection with the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. It is a serious disease with a high mortality rate. Critically, no vaccines or specific treatments have been approved to prevent or treat Ebola caused by this particular strain, leaving health authorities almost entirely dependent on public health measures to prevent its spread.

Jean Kaseya, director general of the African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, described the response bluntly. “It’s like being a soldier,” he said. “Go fight without ammunition. We must rely on public health measures.”

Hopes that existing vaccine options developed for other strains of Ebola could provide even partial protection have faded in recent weeks, Kaseya said.

Death toll rises to 204 as gaps in surveillance described as ‘alarming’

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday reported 91 confirmed Ebola infections, 867 suspected cases and 204 probable deaths. The pace of the epidemic is accelerating: the WHO’s latest tally on Friday recorded 177 deaths out of 750 suspected cases, a figure that rose by 27 in a matter of hours.

Health workers have been able to trace only a fifth of the 1,745 identified contacts currently being traced, a gap in tracing that officials have described as “alarming”. Congo’s transport ministry has suspended commercial, private and special flights to and from Bunia, one of the epicenters of the outbreak in Ituri province near the Ugandan border, although humanitarian and medical flights can still get special permission.

Uganda has reported five confirmed Ebola infections linked to the outbreak, and three Red Cross volunteers have died in the DRC. Three new cases were confirmed in Uganda on Saturday.

Ten countries now at risk across Africa, says Africa CDC

The African Union health agency warned on Saturday that the virus poses a risk to at least ten countries outside the DRC and Uganda. “We have 10 countries at risk,” Kaseya said, citing Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Zambia.

The African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also officially declared the outbreak a continental security public health emergency. Regional concerns intensified after health ministers from Congo, Uganda and South Sudan met with Africa CDC and WHO officials in Kampala to coordinate a cross-border response. In a joint communiqué, the countries warned that porous borders, mining and trade corridors, humanitarian crises and population displacement increase the risk of wider transmission across East and Central Africa.

On May 22, the IHR WHO Emergency Committee issued interim recommendations to strengthen disease surveillance at points of entry to “detect, assess, report and manage travelers with unexplained febrile illness arriving from areas with documented Bundibugyo virus detection,” while also “discourage travel to areas with documented Bundibugyo virus detection.”

Lack of funding and gaps in PPE are hampering the response

Despite millions of dollars pledged by governments and aid agencies since the epidemic escalated, frontline facilities are still struggling to secure essential supplies. Kaseya said the shortages extend far beyond vaccines and experimental treatments to personal protective equipment, treatment facilities and lab supplies.

“Why do we still lack PPE?” he said, asking where the promised funding was going.

In Bunia, some patients were still being treated in regular hospital wards because specialized Ebola treatment centers had not yet been fully established. Countries responding to the outbreak have requested approximately $319 million (roughly ₹2,660 million) for emergency response and preparedness measures, with about 84 percent needed for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda and the remainder for neighboring high-risk countries.

The US expanded its response to Ebola on Saturday, announcing increased airport screening requirements for travelers arriving from Congo, Uganda and South Sudan, along with new emergency funding, supplies of medical supplies and the deployment of disaster response teams.

“We must act urgently,” Kaseya said. “We need to make sure that the pledges we received today can be translated into concrete money very quickly.”

The arrests are complicated by funeral clashes and community tensions

The outbreak has exposed deep cultural tensions around burial practices that health officials say are accelerating transmission. Tension erupted in Bunia after relatives of a man who died at Rwampara Hospital clashed with health workers who refused to release his body due to the risk of infection. During the unrest, Ebola treatment tents run by the humanitarian group Alima were set on fire, and some patients fled amid the chaos, according to local reports.

Women account for more than 60 percent of suspected cases, according to Kasey, in part because in many communities women are expected to wash or touch the bodies of deceased relatives as a sign of love and respect. “To show that you really loved your husband,” he said, “you have to touch the body.”

Africa CDC now works through community and religious leaders rather than relying solely on doctors and officials to communicate public health guidelines. Health officials are urging communities to continue with burial rites while avoiding direct contact with the bodies.

“When you start using local leaders who are not doctors, who can talk in a simpler way, use the local language, give more examples, then we can achieve something,” Kaseya said. “They can still have funerals, but different.