New Delhi: In a statement, the Union Health Ministry on Sunday said, "A young male patient, who recently travelled from a country currently experiencing Mpox transmission, has been identified as a suspect case of Mpox,” said a statement from the union health ministry on Sunday. The patient has been isolated and their sample has been sent for testing."

WHO or World Health Organisation had recently declared mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern — the highest level of alert by the World Health Organisation — last month. 

“The development of this case is consistent with the earlier risk assessment conducted by the NCDC and there is no cause of any undue concern,” the health ministry said.

Earlier, experts had said that there was a possibility of a few imported cases but the risk of a large outbreak with sustained transmission was low for India.

The outbreak is caused by the more virulent Clade 1b strain. Clade 1b causes death in about 3.6 percent of cases, with children more at risk, the WHO has said.

Africa is currently the hotbed of major Mpox outbreak as thousands have been affected there and over 500 have died. 

Mpox is a viral infection that primarily affects humans and animals. It begins with signs of flu — fever, headache, muscle pains, and tiredness and results in pus-filled lesions which last from 2 to 4 weeks.