6 IAF personnel among 25 new cases of Zika virus, total tally touches 36

A high alert has been sounded in the periphery of hangars of the IAF station.

Kanpur: Twenty-five people, including six Indian Air Force personnel, on Wednesday tested positive for Zika virus here, pushing the number of infected persons to 36 in the district. District Magistrate Vishak G said among the fresh cases, 14 are women.

Six IAF personnel have also contracted the infection, he said. The DM said the health department had collected blood samples of 586 people on Sunday and these were sent to the Lucknow's KGMU for testing. Twenty-five samples tested positive for Zika virus, he said.

To check the spread of the disease and track its source, health teams have been pressed to undertake sanitisation programmes, including anti-larvae spraying, identification of fever patients, screening of seriously ill people and pregnant women.