10 Nipah virus deaths in Kerala, 2 others critical

Nadda asks people not to panic, says situation under control

Kozhikode, May 22: Ten persons have so far lost their lives to the Nipah virus in the northern Kerala districts of Kozhikode and Malappuram, health department sources said. They said two more persons, who are suspected to contracted got the virus, have died.

However it was yet to be confirmed if their deaths were due to Nipah, they said. The condition of Moosa, whose two sons had died earlier, is very critical and he was on ventilator support, while another person, undergoing treatment for nipha, was responding to treatment as of now, the sources said.

Of Moosa’s two sons, samples of only one could be sent for testing and it tested positive for the virus, they said.

Another woman from the family had also died of the virus.

A total of 116 persons, who had come in contact with the some of the infected persons, have been put under quarantine — 94 in their homes and 22 in various hospitals, the sources said.

A 21- year- old student hailing from Malappuram, who had gone to his hometown kozhikode recently, is under observation at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical college hospital.

One person is under observation in Waynad.

Kerala health minister K. K. Shylaja had told reporters earlier in the day that 10 deaths were due to the nipha virus and that

WHO has been informed about the outbreak of the virus in Kerala.

Union health minister J. P. Nadda asked people not to “panic” and said the outbreak was “unlikely” to spread as early and efficient containment measures were being taken.

Two persons, who had tested positive, had died on Tuesday.

Twenty eight- year- old nurse Lini, who passed away on Monday, had also contracted the virus, the minister added.