Kerala is all set to face the deadly Nipah virus the second time. The blood samples of the patients under observation in the Kalamassery Medical College has been sent for testing to Alappuzha, Manipal and Pune virology institutes.
Meanwhile, the condition of the 23-year-old student from Thodupuzha who is under treatment for Nipah fever has improved.
The core committee will meet once again in Kochi under the presence of the state's Health Minister K K Shailaja today, to monitor the state of affairs. Though extreme caution is to be excercised, the need for panic does not exist in the current situation, the minister had reiterated in the core committee meeting convened on Tuesday.
Tracing the origin of Nipah The persons suspected to have contracted the disease include the three nurses who attended the youth and his classmate from Kuttambuzha besides an individual from Alappuzha. They are currently housed in an isolation ward in the medical college. Further steps will be undertaken after the test results come in.
Considering the gravity of the situation, the health ministry has prepared a list of 311 people who have come in contact the student after the manifestation of the disease. The list includes individuals from Ernakulam, Thrissur, Idukki and Kollam. They are under observation.
The Health Ministry has visited North Paravur, the area where the youth's home is situated, to collect more information from nearby houses and create an awareness drive. Investigation is being conducted in Ernakulam, Idukki and Thrissur districts to find the origin of the virus.
The decision on whether the schools in these districts will reopen tomorrow or not will be made today.
Meanwhile, the Cochin City Police has registered two cases against individuals for spreading false rumours about Nipah on social media. The police cyber cell has intensified its monitoring of social media platforms as an added precaution.
This article originally appeared in Onmanorama.
