‘India well-prepared’: On HMPV, govt says situation in China is not unusual

The Union health ministry on Saturday urged people to remain calm amid the tensions over the speculated spread of HMPV (human metapneumovirus) in China, assuring that India is “well-prepared” to handle respiratory illnesses and that the situation in China is “not unusual”.

Amid the reports of the rising respiratory illness in China in the past few weeks, a Joint Monitoring Group meeting was held under the chairmanship of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in Delhi, a press release from the Centre said.

Several experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Disaster Management (DM) Cell, Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Emergency Medical Relief (EMR) Division, and hospitals, including AIIMS Delhi participated in this meeting.

After an extensive meeting about HMPV, the ministry came to the view that the situation in China “is not unusual in view of the ongoing flu season”. “The reports also suggest that the cause of the present surge is Influenza virus, RSV and HMPV – the usual pathogens that are expected during the season,” the ministry added.

However, the central government said that it is closely tracking the situation through all potential channel, adding that it has also requested the world health body to share regular updates on the scenario in China. “These viruses are already in circulation globally including India,” it said.

Further, the Centre said that India already has a vigorous surveillance system for Influenza Like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) for Influenza. It noted that data from both the ICMR and IDSP networks show no unusual increase in the number of ILI and SARI cases.

Hospital authorities have also confirmed that there is no surge in respiratory illness cases in the last few weeks except for the usual seasonal variations.

Additionally, the ICMR network tests for other respiratory viruses like Adenovirus, RSV, HMPV, etc., and these pathogens as well, the health ministry said, do not show any unusual increase in the tested samples.

“As a precautionary measure, the number of laboratories testing for HMPV will be enhanced by ICMR, and ICMR will be monitoring trends of HMPV for the entire year,” it added.

Data from the recently conducted drills to check preparedness across the country show that India is “well prepared to deal with any increase in respiratory illnesses”.

“The health systems and surveillance networks remain vigilant, ensuring the country is ready to respond promptly to any emerging health challenges,” the Health ministry said.

Director-General of DGHS, Dr Atul Goel, on Friday had said that HMPV is just like any other respiratory virus which causes common cold.

He urged the public to take general precautions that are taken against all respiratory infections, which means that if somebody has cough and cold then they should avoid coming in contact with a lot of people to prevent the infection from spreading.

“Take the normal medicines that are required for cold and fever. There is nothing to be alarmed about in the present situation,” Goel had said.