'Bats not primary source of Nipah outbreak in Kerala'
27 May 2018 4:49 AM IST
New Delhi: Samples collected from bats in Kerala's Kozhikode and Malappuram districts, where 12 people have died of Nipah infection, have tested negative for the virus, according to a report submitted by a central medical team to the Health Ministry on Saturday.
The report has ruled out bats and pigs as the primary source of the Nipah outbreak, a Health Ministry official said.
The medical team is now looking into other possible reasons behind the outbreak following the report findings.
A total of 21 samples, including that from seven species of bats, two species of pigs, one bovine and one caprine, were sent to the National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases in Bhopal and the National Institute of Virology in Pune.
Samples from humans suspected of contracting Nipah virus have tested negative. "Which means there are only 15 confirmed cases which include 12 deaths. Three persons are undergoing treatment," he said.
The samples from bats found dead in Himachal Pradesh, which were sent to the Pune institute, have been found negative and the two samples of suspected cases from Hyderabad were also negative.
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