Passports of Nipah victims from Kerala - Muhammad Sabith and SalihKozhikode: As bats turned negative for Nipah virus (NiV), the authorities are racking their brains as to how the dreaded disease reached Kerala. Meanwhile rumours and guesstimates about the probable origin of NiV are swirling here, with some alleging that an early victim of suspected Nipah fever had gone to Malayasia, where the NiV was originally found.
However, there is no proof that the deceased, Muhammad Sabith, went to the southeast Asian country. The passport of this Perambra resident reveals he had been only to the UAE recently. The passport of his brother, Salih, also suggests he too had not visited Malaysia. Salih, an engineer, had accompanied 22-year-old Sabbith during the Dubai visit in 2017.
As virology tests confirmed that bats are not the carriers of the virus that caused the Nipah fever outbreak in Kerala's northern districts, authorities decided to investigate Sabbith's overseas trips. A special police team led by rural SP has been deployed by the district collector to probe this angle. The authorities have also enquired with the husband of deceased nurse Lini about her overseas' visits. She too had died of Nipah fever.
As Sabith's body fluids couldn't be tested, it is not known if he had died of Nipah fever.
Efforts are being made to trace a few migrant labourers who had cleaned a well that reportedly was the den of bats. The well belonged to that family whose members had died of Nipah fever. A test done in a Bhopal lab had confirmed that the bats caught from the well didn't have NiV. The blood, fluids and excreta of the mammals were tested. Samples from local cattle and pig also proved negative for NiV.
Meanwhile, as the source of the Nipah fever is still a mystery, more bats are being caught for tests.
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