Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh) [India], May 26 (ANI): Amid heightened global health surveillance, the Andhra Pradesh Health Department has set up an Ebola screening camp at Vijayawada International Airport on Tuesday.

Medical teams deployed by the AP Government are conducting health screening for passengers arriving from Singapore as a precautionary measure. Officials said thermal screening and symptom checks are being carried out to identify any suspected cases and ensure public safety.

Health authorities stated that there is no cause for panic and that the exercise is part of routine preventive monitoring following international health alerts. Passengers are also being advised to report symptoms such as fever, weakness, vomiting, or bleeding history, if any.

Meanwhile, Former WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan on Monday said that India can play a significant role in accelerating Ebola-related research, including the development of vaccines, diagnostics and monoclonal antibodies, through collaboration with the WHO laboratory network and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) amid global concerns over the outbreak of the deadly virus.

Speaking on the recent Ebola outbreak concerns, particularly in the African countries of the Democratic Republic of Congo and some parts of Uganda, Swaminathan described the situation as 'very worrying', noting that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has already declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

She said the outbreak involves a rare strain of the Ebola virus and has been difficult to detect early due to limitations in existing diagnostic tools, which were primarily designed for other strains.

'This is a very worrying situation, and as WHO has said, it is a public health emergency of international concern,' she said, adding that the strain has posed challenges in early identification and treatment development.

According to the latest number issued by World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is likely much larger than currently confirmed figures, warning that active transmission continues to expand across affected regions.

Sharing an update on the outbreak in a post on X, Tedros said 101 cases have so far been confirmed in the DRC, including 10 confirmed deaths. However, he cautioned that the actual scale of the epidemic is significantly higher, with more than 900 suspected cases and 220 suspected deaths under investigation.

He further noted that neighbouring Uganda has also reported fresh infections, including two additional confirmed cases among healthcare workers, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the country to seven, including one death.

He added that the WHO and partner agencies are scaling up response measures with global health teams working to intensify contact tracing and surveillance to identify infected individuals at the earliest and break chains of transmission.The WHO has already flagged the Bundibugyo strain outbreak as a serious public health concern amid ongoing challenges in diagnosis, treatment availability, and surveillance in conflict-affected regions of central Africa. (ANI)