New Delhi: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has expressed satisfaction with the infrastructure in place at all entry points to the country to detect people arriving with symptoms of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
The Minister also denied reports that a Nigerian national admitted to the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) hospital in the national capital has tested positive for the dreaded Ebola disease.
"Our vigilant officials did indeed send a person to RML Hospital. His blood samples were sent to National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and National Institute of Virology, Pune. We are assured that he tested negative and there is no cause for worry,” Vardhan said on Monday.
“Till now, 12,257 passengers have been screened at various international airports. Several departments of the Central government are working in tandem with state governments to ensure total surveillance. I personally inspected the arrangements at Bangalore International Airport on Thursday,” Vardhan added.
Vardhan reassured the people that there was no cause for panic.
“We have systems in place for tracking anybody with remotest symptoms of EVD throughout the 21-day danger period. Luckily the disease is not air borne and therefore the infrastructure of prevention will easily arrest its spread,” the Minister said.
On August 8, the World Health Organization (WHO) had sounded an international emergency on the Ebola epidemic in four western African countries
According to WHO, 2,127 EVD cases have been detected worldwide till August 13 and the total fatalities caused by it stands at 1,145.
