Nipah Virus: Malappuram girl dies, Centre mulls sending team to Kerala to implement public health measures

After recent death of an 18-year-old girl in Malappuram district of Kerala was confirmed as Nipah infection, the Union Health Ministry is considering sending a National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) to assist the state government in implementing public health measures, reported news agency PTI citing sources.

The patient, hailing from Chettiyarangadi in Malappuram, succumbed after receiving treatment at a private hospital in Kozhikode district.

The preliminary tests indicated Nipah and the infection was subsequently confirmed by the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune after sample examination, the PTI report said.

On Friday, local authorities in Palakkad district issued a strong warning to the public and health workers to remain extremely vigilant after a 38-year-old woman from Thachanattukara was also tested positive for Nipah.

Health authorities in Malappuram initiated surveillance in 20 wards in panchayats such as Makkaraparamba, Kuruva, Kootilangadi, and Mankada, an official statement said on Saturday.

The objective was to identify the source of the disease and strengthen household-based awareness, it added.

A total of 65 teams visited 1,655 houses and found no one with symptoms of Nipah during the survey, the statement also said.

The Central Surveillance Unit of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), NCDC, is in close contact with the state unit and is actively monitoring the situation.

The State Control Room has been activated for coordinating the various containment activities.

The public health response is guided by the Kerala State NiVD guidelines for surveillance, diagnosis, treatment, prevention and control.

Kerala Health Minister review situation

Meanwhile, Kerala Health Minister Veena George held a high-level meeting in Thiruvananthapuram to review the situation.

She informed that 425 people are on the Nipah contact list, with 228 in Malappuram, 110 in Palakkad, and 87 in Kozhikode.

Of them, five people are admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), and the test result of another person in the contact list turned negative for the infection, the minister's office said in a statement.