Members in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday urged the Government to take necessary steps to save the country from the spread of the new Ebola virus that has reportedly claimed over 3,000 lives across the globe.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Pramod Tiwari from the Congress said that Health Minister Harshvardhan had given a statement saying there is no case of Ebola reported from anywhere in the country but there were many suspected cases reported in the media from Delhi and Mumbai.
"It is a serious disease where mortality rate is as high as 90 per cent. There is no vaccine or treatment for it," Tiwari said, adding that the Government should not have given an "irresponsible" statement. Stressing that WHO has declared it Category IV disease, he demanded immediate and proper arrangements to prevent its spread in India as it can be spread from animals as well as humans.
With a number of members echoing similar views, Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien said: "It is a very serious matter and I hope the Government has taken note of it and will do what is necessary."
Meanwhile, sources in the Ministry of External Affairs said that the Indian High Commission in Nigeria is in touch with the four Indian doctors, who claim they are being forced to treat Ebola patients against their will, and their hospital so that both sides arrive at an amicable solution.
The doctors have claimed that their passports have been taken away and they are being threatened to continue their stay, a fact denied by the Primus Hospital in the capital city of Abuja. They have appealed to the Indian Government to facilitate their return home, the sources said.