Fever surveillance intensified to tackle Nipah virus

Thiruvananthapuram | As many as 609 persons who came into contact with Nipah infected patients have been traced by preparing a "route map," and accordingly, fever surveillance has been intensified, Kerala Health Minister Veena George said here on Monday.

Of this, 112 persons were in touch with a 57-year-old man from Palakkad district who died due to the virus infection on July 12. Hence, field-level activities to detect fever have been intensified in specified areas in Palakkad after declaring a containment zone, she said in a statement.

The man had been undergoing treatment at a private hospital, and the test result from Manjeri Medical College was positive for Nipah. That was the second death due to Nipah in Kerala in recent days.

The minister said a "route map" was prepared by collecting information, including CCTV visuals. A total of 609 people have been traced and they are in the contact list (across various districts) and officials would take steps as per norms to ensure their well being, she said.

There are 207 people in the contact list in Malappuram district, 286 in Palakkad, 114 in Kozhikode, and two in Ernakulam, as per the latest figures released by the health department.

Meanwhile, Minister George held a high-level meeting of health department officials here and reviewed the Nipah situation in affected districts.