To allay fears about Ebola outbreak, the Government on Tuesday said that a surveillance and tracking system similar to that in Nigeria, which has been declared Ebola-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO), has been put in place in the country.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said India has pulled out all stops to upgrade its equipment and train health staff and is in process of strengthening them.The use of thermal scanners, which has made Nigeria’s success possible, is widely prevalent in most of the 15 major airports, often two in each, Vardhan said in a statement released here.
“India already has a highly-rated integrated disease surveillance network,” he said.The Government will purchase more such scanners, which are meant to detect high body temperature, an Ebola symptom, and install them over the next few days at airports and sea ports.Following a meeting with officials from several Ministries, besides those from Defence forces and National Disaster Management Authority, he said all international airports and sea ports will soon be fitted out with thermal scanners and other detection equipment for round-the-clock deployment.
Health authorities at Indira Gandhi International Airport also conducted a mock drill on Tuesday to test the alertness of the Ebola detection centre.India has not reported any case of Ebola.The Government has also opened a round-the-clock helpline to disseminate information and spreading awareness among the people.