Even as the death toll due to the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala reached 12 on Thursday, officials are worried about the lack of quarantine facilities and failure to enforce procedures to isolate vulnerable persons in the northern districts of the state.
In Perambra near Kozhikode, where four members of a family have died after being infected with Nipah, local residents claimed there was little or no quarantine treatment for persons who had close contact with infected people.
Staff of the local primary health centre claimed no procedures were enforced to quarantine those who had contact with the affected family. According to reports, there have been no efforts to quarantine relatives of Lini, a nurse, who died after contracting the illness from affected persons.
Earlier in the day, the Kerala government urged travellers to be extra-cautious while visiting Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad and Kannur districts. In a high-level meeting on Thursday, the Kerala government announced Ribavirin tablets, an anti-viral medicine, were being distributed and officials have been asked to send the medicines to all areas affected by Nipah.
Dead bats trigger panic in Himachal
The discovery of 18 dead bats at the premises of a government school in Himachal Pradesh's Nahan district triggered panic on Wednesday. Students and staff of the school said bats visit the area every year and die, but this year the numbers were much greater. Officials said staff and students have been informed to avoid contact with the animals to minimise chances of Nipah infection.
(With inputs from Onmanorama)