Brunei bans food from India

Brunei bans food from India

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (Reuter): Brunei has banned foodstuffs from plague-stricken India and suspended visas for visiting Indian residents, a home ministry spokesman confirmed yesterday.

He said the ban on food, including items brought in by air, was imposed last week and that applications for visa and work permits from India were also temporarily suspended.

Around 4,000 people are suspected of having pneumonic plague and 52 have died from it in India. New Delhi said it was confident the outbreak had peaked and was under control.

Passengers from India, including those who transit through Indian airports, are screened at the airport in Brunei's capital Bandar Seri Begawan. Suspected cases will be isolated and examined, he said.