Nipah Outbreak in India Sparks Chinese Travel Anxiety Ahead of Lunar New Year
A fresh outbreak of the deadly Nipah virus in eastern India has triggered significant public anxiety in China, coinciding with the imminent Lunar New Year travel rush. Indian authorities confirmed at least five Nipah cases in West Bengal last week, placing nearly 100 individuals under home quarantine. Despite reassurances from public health experts that the risk of widespread transmission remains low, concern is spreading rapidly across Chinese social media platforms.
Travel Season Concerns Amplify Public Fears
This development comes at a particularly sensitive time, just ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays – China's busiest annual travel period. Online discussions about the Nipah outbreak in neighbouring India are surging, with many users expressing apprehension about potential travel-related risks. According to the South China Morning Post, one social media user commented: "It's so scary, especially with the Spring Festival coming up. I don't want to experience another lockdown." Another user questioned whether travel channels with India could be temporarily suspended.
In response to the Indian outbreak, China has added Nipah to its official list of monitored infectious diseases, as reported by Yicai China. The 40-day Lunar New Year travel season, known as chunyun, begins on 2 February and runs until 13 March, typically involving billions of passenger journeys across the country.
Expert Analysis Suggests Limited Transmission Risk
Despite the growing public unease, Chinese public health authorities and virologists maintain that Nipah's characteristics make a major outbreak unlikely. Although the virus carries a high fatality rate – with mortality rates reaching up to 75 percent – it spreads far less efficiently than respiratory pathogens like influenza or Sars-CoV-2.
Feng Zijian, former deputy director general of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Global Times that human-to-human infection remains possible through exposure to an infected person's bodily fluids or waste, creating potential for hospital-based transmission and spread within families. However, Zhuang Shilihe, a Guangzhou-based medical specialist, told state media that Nipah does not spread easily, based on lessons from contact tracing during past sporadic outbreaks worldwide.
Regional Responses and Historical Context
Several other Asian countries are tightening screening measures following the Indian outbreak. Thailand has reportedly enhanced health screening at key airports including Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and Phuket for passengers arriving from West Bengal. South Korea has classified Nipah as a top-tier infectious disease requiring immediate reporting and isolation. Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection stated it would "monitor the situation and implement appropriate prevention and control measures based on risk assessments."
Nipah virus was first detected in Southeast Asia during outbreaks in Malaysia and Singapore between 1998 and 1999, where infections were largely linked to pig farm workers and those in close contact with livestock. Since the turn of the century, repeated human outbreaks have been reported in India and Bangladesh, most often between December and April. These outbreaks have been strongly associated with consumption of raw date palm sap contaminated by fruit bats, the virus's natural reservoir. India's previous outbreak occurred in Kerala in mid-2025, when four infections were confirmed.
Virus Characteristics and Travel Advisory
Nipah causes a range of symptoms from mild illness to severe respiratory distress and brain inflammation. Encephalitis represents the most dangerous complication, often leading to confusion, seizures, coma and, in severe cases, death. There are currently no approved treatments or vaccines against Nipah.
In a recent notice, China's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention called for "heightened vigilance" against imported infectious diseases during the travel season, warning that illnesses including malaria, dengue, chikungunya, and Lassa fever could be introduced by returning travellers. Notably, Nipah was not specifically named in this advisory.
According to available data, 339,442 Chinese tourists visited India in 2019, while approximately 142,000 Indians traveled to China. India resumed granting tourist visas to Chinese nationals from July last year, marking a step toward normalising diplomatic ties after a five-year gap following military clashes along their disputed Himalayan border in 2020.
