Nipah virus: Malappuram tops contact list; restrictions lifted as no new cases emerge

Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Thursday said that 499 individuals have been identified as contacts of the two recent Nipah virus cases reported in the state.

One of the infected patients, an 18-year-old girl from Malappuram, succumbed to the infection. A 38-year-old woman from Thachanattukara in Palakkad is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Kozhikode.

Providing a district-wise breakdown, the minister said 203 people are on the contact list in Malappuram, 116 in Kozhikode, 178 in Palakkad, and two in Ernakulam. In Malappuram, 11 individuals are currently hospitalised, including two in the ICU. In Palakkad, three people are being treated in isolation wards. Of the total, 29 people have been categorised as being at the highest risk and 117 as high risk, Veena George added.

Meanwhile, the Malappuram district administration has lifted containment measures as no fresh Nipah cases have been reported there in recent days.

A central team, including members of the National Joint Outbreak Response Team appointed by the Union Health Ministry, visited affected areas in the northern districts on Wednesday. The team assessed the situation in Malappuram and is coordinating preventive efforts with the state government.

According to the World Health Organization, Nipah is a zoonotic virus that can spread from animals to humans, through contaminated food, or directly between people.