Relief in Kerala as 24 More Nipah Samples Test Negative

Kerala’s Kozhikode district, which recently reported two deaths from the Nipah virus, received some relief as 24 additional samples tested negative for the virus on Thursday. Three results are still pending. Local authorities have managed to effectively contain the spread, limiting it to just six positive cases out of 1,286 suspects identified.

Since the Nipah scare began, 352 samples have been sent for testing, and there have been no new positive cases in the past five days. Currently, 952 people remain under observation, with the condition of a nine-year-old boy who was previously positive improving. Researchers from the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune are conducting studies and testing with bats in the affected areas but have not yet identified the cause of the outbreak. Nipah virus outbreaks were previously reported in Kozhikode in 2018 and 2021, and in Ernakulam in 2019.