Nipah Virus in Kerala: Contact List Risk Expanded to 406; 194 in High-Risk Category, Says Health Minister

The number of people at risk of contracting Nipah from the 14-year-old boy who recently died from the infection has risen to 406, with 194 classified as high-risk, according to Health Minister Veena George. However, Kerala received some relief as test results for 11 people, whose samples were analyzed at the Kozhikode Medical College virology laboratory and the Advanced Virology Institute in Thiruvananthapuram, have come back negative.

"This includes two people from Palakkad, two from Thiruvananthapuram and the parents of the deceased boy," she said. The Health Department has reported that among the people on the contact list, two are from Palakkad and four are from Thiruvananthapuram. The two individuals from Palakkad are employed at a private hospital, while the four from Thiruvananthapuram have traveled to Perinthalmanna for treatment. Additionally, of the 194 high-risk contacts, 139 are health workers, with 15 currently hospitalized across various facilities.

George said those who would be discharged from hospitals should remain in isolation as per protocols issued. The minister also said that the friends of the deceased child have informed them that he had consumed a fruit from a nearby property in Pandikkad panchayat, where the presence of bats has been detected.

The 14-year-old boy from Kerala's Malappuram who was under treatment here for Nipah infection died on Sunday morning. Meanwhile, an ICMR team has arrived in Kerala, and a mobile laboratory from Pune's NIV is expected to reach the state on Tuesday. Health Minister Veena George also reported that 224 fever surveillance teams have been deployed to conduct surveys in homes across the Pandikkad and Anakkayam panchayats.