It belongs to the Rhabdoviridae family, the same virus family that includes rabies.

• It was first identified in 1965 in Chandipura village in Maharashtra, India.
• The virus is known to cause Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), a serious condition that leads to inflammation of the brain.

Transmission

• It is vector-borne and primarily spread through the bite of infected sand flies and mosquitoes, which are tiny blood-feeding insects.

Symptoms

• Symptoms resemble the flu, including fever, body aches, and headache. It can cause altered mental state, seizures, encephalitis, respiratory distress, bleeding tendencies, and anaemia in advanced stages.

Treatments

• There is no specific antiviral treatment or vaccine

Source: The Indian Express