Kerala witnessed the first fatality due to the Nipah virus on July 21.
Thiruvananthapuram: In an alarming news reported from Kerala, the presence of the Nipah virus has been detected in bat samples collected from Pandikkad in Kerala’s Malappuram district where the death of a 14-year-old boy due to the infection was reported on July 21.
Veena George, the state Health Minister said that antibodies were found in six out of 27 fruit bat samples collected within a five-kilometre radius.
George said that all tests of those on the contact list of the infected individual conducted as per Nipah protocol have been negative for the virus so far.
A total of 472 people are on the contact list, and 261 individuals who have completed the mandatory 21-day isolation period have been removed from the list, she added.
Kerala witnessed the first fatality due to the Nipah virus on July 21, 2024 as a 14-year-old boy from Malappuram, who was under treatment for the infection at a state-run hospital in Kozhikode, died following a massive heart attack.
(With PTI inputs)