Amid Rising Covid Cases, Kerala Faces New Challenges With Nipah Virus

Nipah Virus: Kerala, which also saw a localised outbreak of 63 cases of Zika virus in July, already has preventive measures in place like use of masks and PPE kits due to the rising COVID-19 cases.

As Kerala reeled under a daily increase of nearly 30,000 cases of COVID-19, the deadly Nipah virus has come as another thorn in its side, prompting the state to further heighten the alertness of its health machinery to prevent an outbreak of a different infection. The southern state, which already saw a localised outbreak of 63 cases of Zika virus in July that were mostly confined to Thiruvananthapuram, however, need not be concerned about the spread of Nipah infection as preventive measures like use of masks and PPE kits -- are already in place due to COVID-19 and intensive contact tracing was going on, state health minister Veena George said on Sunday. Meanwhile, the central government has rushed a team from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to provide support to the state, where a 12 year-old boy died due to Nipah on Sunday and two others displayed symptoms of the virus infection. However, experts, like Dr Amar Fettle, Dr TS Anish and Dr TN Suresh, said that there was less cause for concern at present as the state has already dealt with the Nipah virus twice in the past -- when it reared its head in 2018 and 2019 -- and the risk of transmission would be less this time round as protective measures, like wearing of masks and PPE kits, are already in place.