Kozhikode: The Kerala Health Department on Tuesday issued a high alert in Kallad and in Mangalad of Ayancheri panchayat of the district in light of a possible Nipah outbreak here.
Schools and anganwadis in the two areas remained shut on Tuesday as a precaution. Two people have died of suspected Nipah in the district.
"We have already begun efforts to draw a list of people who came into contact with the suspected Nipah victims. We shall make efforts to quarantine the area as per protocol if the results from the Pune Virology Institute are positive," Kerala Health Minister Veena George said on Tuesday.
A high-level meeting headed by the minister took place at the District Collectorate at 10.30 am to discuss the measures that need to be taken to contain the viral outbreak.
According to reports, a resident of Kallad, a village in Maruthonkara, near Vadakara died of suspected Nipah on August 30. Another forty-year-old native of Mangalad in Ayancheri panchayat near Vadakara also died of similar symptoms on Monday. The health officials confirmed that both people came into contact at a private hospital.
Isolation of victims' families
Five family members of the Kallad native, who passed away on August 30, are currently under isolation. These include the victim's two children aged nine and four years, his wife, brother-in-law and a 10-month-old infant.
Out of the five, three have Nipah related symptoms. The nine-year-old child is in critical condition.
Though doctors have confirmed that the 10-month-old has contracted the common cold, the child is still under isolation. The wife has no symptoms.
Meanwhile, authorities informed that the cremation of the 40-year-old victim from Mangalad, Ayanchery will conducted only after the results from NIV, Pune. His family is also under isolation.
The Health Department has already compiled a list of people who came in contact with the family in Kallad.
Schools, anganwadis shut
The school and anganwadi in the area will remain closed in Kallad and Ayancheri till the test results are out, Ayancheri panchayat president told Onmanorama.
Deaths due to Nipah virus infection were reported in Kozhikode district in 2018 and 2021.
The first Nipah virus (NiV) outbreak in south India was reported from Kozhikode on May 19, 2018.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Nipah virus infection is a zoonotic illness that is transmitted to people from animals and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person to person.
Among infected people, it causes a range of illnesses, from asymptomatic (subclinical) infection to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis.
The virus can also cause severe disease in animals such as pigs, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers, WHO said.
