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A sandfly-borne virus of the rabies family that causes acute encephalitis with high fatality, mainly in children, and recurs in outbreaks in western and central India.
Chandipura virus, abbreviated CHPV, is a virus belonging to the genus Vesiculovirus in the family Rhabdoviridae — the same family that contains the rabies virus. It causes acute encephalitis syndrome, an inflammation of the brain that progresses rapidly and carries a high case fatality rate, and it affects children far more than adults. The virus was first identified in 1965 in Chandipura village in the Nagpur district of Maharashtra, from which it takes its name. It is transmitted principally by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus, and outbreaks tend to occur in the monsoon and pre-monsoon months when sandfly populations rise. There is no specific antiviral treatment and no vaccine; management is supportive, which is why early hospitalisation and vector control are the mainstays of response.
Type: PhenomenonFamily and genus — Rhabdoviridae family, Vesiculovirus genus, related to the rabies virus
Vector — transmitted mainly by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus; mosquitoes and ticks have also been implicated
Disease — acute encephalitis syndrome, with fever, vomiting, altered consciousness and seizures
Age group — overwhelmingly affects children, typically those under fifteen years
Rapid progression — the illness can move from fever to coma within a day or two, which is why case fatality is high
Seasonality — outbreaks cluster in the pre-monsoon and monsoon months when sandfly density rises
No specific treatment — there is no licensed antiviral or vaccine; care is supportive
Frequency: Appears in UPSC Prelims science and health questions whenever an outbreak is reported
Chandipura vesiculovirus (CHPV)
Rhabdoviridae
Vesiculovirus
Rabies virus, of the same family
1965, Chandipura village, Nagpur district, Maharashtra
Sandfly (genus Phlebotomus)
Acute encephalitis syndrome
Children under fifteen years
None available
None; management is supportive
Chandipura is a useful case study in how a disease can be both well characterised scientifically and poorly controlled in practice. The virus has been known since 1965 and its vector is identified, yet outbreaks continue to recur with high child mortality, because the elements that would prevent them are social and infrastructural rather than medical. Sandflies breed in the cracks of mud-plastered walls and in accumulated organic debris around rural houses, so the disease tracks housing quality and sanitation closely, and vector control means residual spraying and plastering rather than any pharmaceutical intervention. The rapidity of progression compounds the problem: with a child moving from fever to unconsciousness in a day or two, outcomes depend almost entirely on how quickly a family can reach a hospital with paediatric intensive care, which in the affected districts is often far away. For a Mains answer on public health, Chandipura illustrates that for several vector-borne diseases the binding constraint is health-system access and living conditions, not the absence of a cure.
Chandipura virus (CHPV): Rhabdoviridae family, Vesiculovirus genus — related to rabies
First identified in 1965 in Chandipura village, Nagpur district, Maharashtra
Transmitted mainly by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus
Causes acute encephalitis syndrome with high case fatality
Predominantly affects children under fifteen
Progresses very rapidly, sometimes within a day or two
No vaccine and no specific antiviral treatment; care is supportive
Outbreaks reported in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat; seasonality linked to sandfly density
Sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus are the principal vector. Mosquitoes and ticks have also been implicated, but the sandfly is the main carrier.
No. There is neither a licensed vaccine nor a specific antiviral treatment. Management is supportive, which is why early hospitalisation matters so much.
It was first identified in 1965 in Chandipura village in the Nagpur district of Maharashtra.
Rhabdoviridae, genus Vesiculovirus — the same family that contains the rabies virus.
Chandipura is sandfly-borne with no vaccine available, while Japanese Encephalitis is mosquito-borne and a vaccine exists and is part of India's immunisation programme in endemic districts.