At least two cases of Nipah virus were confirmed in mid-January in the Indian state of West Bengal, leading to the quarantine of approximately 100 people. Thailand, as a precaution, strengthened its border surveillance, although no cases of infection had been detected there.
Classified as a high-risk pathogen by the WHO, the Nipah virus has been circulating in South Asia since the late 1990s. Transmitted primarily by fruit bats and sometimes by pigs, it initially causes flu-like symptoms before potentially progressing to acute encephalitis or respiratory distress. Its mortality rate, which is highly variable, can reach 75%. No vaccine or specific treatment currently exists.
Despite these concerning characteristics, specialists consider the probability of international spread to be low. Human-to-human transmission remains relatively inefficient and requires close and prolonged contact, unlike SARS-CoV-2. The cases identified in India involve only healthcare workers exposed to the same hospital cluster. Furthermore, those infected present with visible symptoms, facilitating rapid identification and isolation.
According to Public Health France, the virus appears each year in the form of small clusters in the Indian subcontinent, without ever having been detected in Europe. The quarantine measures implemented in India demonstrate active surveillance, and investigations are continuing to understand the origin of the infections. For experts, there is currently no indication of a risk of a pandemic: the outbreak appears to be contained and manageable.
 Pascal Lemontel
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28/01/2026 | 
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