Nipah Virus Alert issued by Rajasthan Govt officials

In the wake of deaths from Nipah virus in Kerala, Rajasthan government today gave directions to officials to take precautionary measures to check the spread of the virus in the state.

Health Minister Kalicharan Saraf said that many people of the state live in Kerala and they often visit Rajasthani therefore "there is a need to remain alert and create public awareness on the issue."

He asked officials to make necessary arrangements for checking the spread of the virus in the state.

Nipah virus has so far claimed 10 lives in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts in north Kerala while two more persons who died of high fever are suspected to have contracted the virus.

Meanwhile, Kerala government today asked travelers to avoid visiting four northern districts of the state - Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad, and Kannur.

In an advisory issued by Health Secretary Rajeev Sadanandan, it was stated that traveling to any part of Kerala was safe. But if travelers wished to be extra cautious, they may avoid the four districts, it said.

The natural host of the Nipah virus (NiV) virus are fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family, Pteropus genus.

There is no vaccination for the virus which has a mortality rate of 70 percent.

_{^{source: PTI}}