Indira Gandhi International Airport has issued a new health warning for passengers travelling from, or passing through, countries affected by Ebola, urging those who have signs and symptoms to report them at a time in advance to the chief health officer of the airport before immigration.
The warning, issued on Thursday by the Directorate General of Health Services, under the Union Health Ministry, was targeted squarely at travellers entering the country from countries like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan, where concerns over Ebola virus infection have surged in recent times.
Individuals who develop fever, weakness or fatigue, severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, sore throat or unexplained bleeding have been instructed to call in health professionals and to call airport health officials, the official notice at the airport showed.
Others have cautioned travellers who might have touched the blood or other bodily fluids of suspected or confirmed Ebola patients. Those passengers have also been told to contact the Airport Health Officer or their health desk before they complete their immigration requirements.
The recommendation also mentioned that if symptoms develop upon arrival in India within 21 days, the travelling person shall take immediate action to seek medical attention, and if so, he or she should inform the healthcare authorities of the country of the travel history. Early reporting and monitoring remain critical to avoid anything putting at risk the spread of a potentially lethal viral disease, health officials said.
Passenger Advisory issued at 10:55 hrs.#DelhiAirport #PassengerAdvisory #DELAdvisory@CISFHQrs @BOIndiaOfficial @MoCA_GoI @PIBHomeAffairs @LPAI_Official @shipmin_india @MoHFW_INDIA @BcasHq pic.twitter.com/XWHlr0wjFO
— Delhi Airport (@DelhiAirport) May 21, 2026
The notice was given by the Airport Health Organisation in reaction to precautionary public health action and international health laws that aim to boost disease surveillance at airports. “This is to assist in maintaining human life,” the report said, adding that the action comes after the World Health Organisation warned that Ebola outbreaks could emerge in parts of Congo and Uganda.
Due to the World Health Organisation's message, Indian authorities have intensified their preparations and assessments so that they can assess potential threats and ensure there are rapid-response systems in place. In response, top officials from the Ministry of Health have recently carried out an executive review meeting to discuss the changing face in the global situation and whether India is able to respond to what could soon materialise as a potentially catastrophic public health emergency due to widespread Ebola infections.
Ebola can be a highly infectious virus that can lead to severe fever, internal bleeding, and organ failure in severe cases. The virus is spread through direct contact with the body fluids of infected people, or surfaces and objects contaminated with it.
Though outbreaks have been reported in certain areas in Africa, it is international travel that will prompt an immediate response and preventative surveillance at each of the international cross-border travel hubs. The alert is precautionary, officials said, and panic is not an immediate concern.
But officials have said passenger cooperation, particularly of passengers who come from those places, is essential to keep the population safe and containment action going quickly if it does happen. India’s preventive public-health strategy, which was also met by increased surveillance at airports and health-screening measures, probably means more stringent surveillance of people travelling from countries most predisposed to transmit diseases.
