Second suspected Nipah death in Kerala; tracing, surveillance stepped up
Palakkad (Kerala), Jul 13 (PTI): A 57-year-old man from Palakkad district in Kerala, who died on July 12, is suspected to have been infected with the Nipah virus, prompting the government to ramp up contact tracing and field-level surveillance in the area.
The man had been undergoing treatment at a private hospital in this northern district.
His samples were tested at Manjeri Medical College, where the result came back positive for Nipah, Health Minister Veena George said in a statement.
She added that the government is awaiting confirmation from the National Institute of Virology in Pune.
This is the second Nipah-related death reported in Kerala in recent days.
A native of Malappuram had recently died from the infection, while another patient from Palakkad district remains hospitalised.
In response to the fresh suspected case, the government has ramped up contact tracing and field-level surveillance in the area.
A list of 46 people who came into contact with the patient has been drawn up.
CCTV footage and mobile tower location data have been used to help identify those on the contact list.
A detailed route map of the patient's recent movements has been prepared, along with a family tree to trace close contacts.
Health teams are now carrying out fever surveillance in the region to detect any possible symptoms in others.
"Field teams have been strengthened, and all available data is being used to monitor the situation," George said.
Further steps will be taken once confirmation is received from the National Institute of Virology in Pune.
The minister has also instructed officials to step up the response team, considering the seriousness of the case.
Authorities have urged people in Palakkad and Malappuram districts to avoid unnecessary visits to hospitals, especially under the current circumstances.
Visits to friends or relatives receiving treatment should be strictly limited, officials said. Only one person is allowed to accompany a patient as a bystander.
Both healthcare workers and those coming to the hospital, including patients and their companions, are required to wear masks at all times, an official release said.
According to the WHO, Nipah virus is a zoonotic disease that spreads from animals to humans and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or via direct human-to-human contact.
The Nipah virus contact list now includes a total of 543 people. Of these, 46 individuals are linked to the newly confirmed case, it said.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
