Kerala has yet again fully recovered from a Nipah virus scare that was reported in Malappuram district mid-July.
A 14-year-old boy from Pandikkad succumbed to the bat-borne infection that emerged in the state for the fifth time in six years.
On Wednesday, the Health Department informed that the state has completed the 42-day double incubation period. Following this, 472 persons, who were under observation/isolation, have been removed from the contact list. The 24-hour control room that became operational shortly after the case emerged, has also been stopped.
According to the Health Department, timely intervention prevented the spread of infection. Health officials had started the contact tracing the same day the illness was confirmed.
Nipah isolation and treatment rooms were arranged at the Medical Colleges in Manjeri and Kozhikode. Fever clinics were opened at Wandoor, Nilambur and Karuvarachund.
Meanwhile, the temporary restrictions that were imposed in Pandikkad and Anakkayam panchayats have also been lifted.
Nipah has claimed 21 lives in Kerala since the first outbreak in 2018 in Kozhikode. Kerala reported Nipah cases in 2019, 2021 and 2023 as well.
