Letters to the Editor: Ebola Scare

Ebola Scare

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda has alarmed the world. Ebola, first identified in 1976, spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of infected persons. It can cause fever, vomiting, bleeding and organ failure. Sadly, fatality rates have reached as high as 90 per cent in severe outbreaks. Now, the question is: can India, with its huge population and limited healthcare infrastructure, deal with such an epidemic since the world has no idea how to face the enormous and emerging global health threat? We must, therefore, remain vigilant and strengthen airport screening, quarantine measures, rapid contact tracing and hospital preparedness to prevent the entry of the virus in India. What is needed for humanity is to adopt more sustainable ecological and dietary practices and allow wildlife to thrive undisturbed to check the risk of increasing future pandemics.

Iqbal Saikia,

Guwahati