Nipah Virus Under Control, Screening in Sensitive Areas To Continue Till June 30: Kerala Health Minister K K Shailaja
Kerala Health minister K K Shailaja, who joined the meeting through video conferencing from Kozhikode said that there is no need to panic and the situation is under control.
Thiruvananthapuram, June 3: The death toll due to Nipah virus in Kerala rose to 17 while about 2,000 people who came in contact with the infected patients are also being monitored. In wake of the growing concerns over the spread of the deadly Nipah virus, Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Saturday reviewed the ground situation with his Kerala counterpart.
Nadda took stock of the public health measures in the affected areas of Kozhikode and Malappuram where the Nipah virus has claimed 17 lives so far. According to a report by TOI, Kerala health minister K K Shailaja said that the deadly Nipah Virus is under control while the screening will continue till June 30.
In a high-level meeting, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan decided to continue the screening for Nipah virus till June 30 in highly sensitive areas of the state. Kerala Health minister K K Shailaja, who joined the meeting through video conferencing from Kozhikode said that there is no need to panic and the situation is under control.
Meanwhile, Additional chief secretary (health) Rajeev Sadanandan was quoted by TOI saying that the Nipah virus is under total control and it will not spread further beyond June 11. On Saturday, after reviewing the situation, the central team suggested triage of Nipah cases and establishment of dedicated isolation facilities in district and strict infection control practices, a health ministry statement said.
According to a PTI report, the government has also issued advisories for the general public and healthcare personnel along with guidelines for sample collection for Nipah virus, hospital infection control and laboratory biosafety guidelines.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 03, 2018 08:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).