Protecting Wildlife
The death of eight elephants in Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh, likely due to consuming fungus-infected kodo millet, underscores a profound and growing challenge in India’s conservation landscape.
Experts have said that vector control, hygiene and awareness are the key measures against the Chandipura virus and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) cases in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.
In Gujarat, symptoms of Chandipura virus were found in kids which has caused some scare.
Professor Atul Goel, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Union Health Ministry, and Director of National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), along with experts from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) , Kalawati Saran Children’s Hospital, and National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences (NIMHANS) reviewed the Chandipura virus and AES cases.
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They concluded that infectious agents contribute to only a small proportion of AES cases across the country, said the Ministry of Health.
They emphasised the need for comprehensive epidemiological, environmental, and entomological studies of the AES cases reported in Gujarat.
“A multidisciplinary central team from NCDC, Indian Council of Medical Research, and Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) is being deployed to assist Gujarat with these investigations,” said the Ministry.
Chandipura Virus (CHPV) is a member of Rhabdoviridae family known to cause sporadic cases and outbreaks in western, central, and southern parts of the Country, especially during the monsoon season.
It is transmitted by vectors such as sand flies and ticks.
The disease affects mostly children under 15 years of age and can be present with a febrile illness that may in some cases result in death.
AES is a group of clinically similar neurologic manifestations caused by several different viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites, spirochetes and chemicals/toxins.
The known viral causes of AES include JE, Dengue, HSV, CHPV, West Nile, etc.
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