India sees record surge in stomach bug outbreaks

The reasons behind India’s recent surge in stomach-related disorders remain a bit of a mystery, but it shows the lurking public health risks

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India recorded more than 1,000 outbreaks of acute diarrheal disease across the country last year. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 9:59am, 19 Feb 2025Updated: 10:06am, 19 Feb 2025

Outbreaks of acute diarrheal disease surged to the highest on record in India last year, in the latest example of unusual surges of even the most common bacterial and viral ailments across the world.

The South Asian nation had recorded more than 1,000 outbreaks of acute diarrheal disease across the country as of December 22, according to the latest data from the federal health ministry’s surveillance programme. This is the highest level since the data was made publicly available in 2009.

The health agency also reported more than 300 outbreaks of food poisoning across the country, the highest since 2019. An outbreak is defined as an illness “clearly in excess of expected numbers”, according to the ministry.

While stomach-related disorders are among the most common infectious illnesses in India, the reasons behind this exceptional surge in the outbreaks are a bit of a mystery. It also shows the lurking public health risks linked to contaminated water or food sources in the world’s most-populous country.

Volunteers distribute food during the Maha Kumbh Mela festival in Prayagraj, India, on February 1. Photo: AFP

There has been a global resurgence of diseases in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, as historical illnesses and newer complications of existing ailments become more common across the world. Factors such as climate change, rising social inequality and healthcare services contribute in ways hard to measure, adding to the mounting public-health challenge.

An analysis last year in collaboration with disease-forecasting firm Airfinity found that 44 governments had reported the resurgence of at least one infectious disease over 10 times worse than the pre-pandemic baseline.