Uttar Pradesh reports first case of Zika virus, Air Force officer in Kanpur tests positive
Written by Sharangee Dutta | Edited by Poulomi Ghosh, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Oct 24, 2021 07:46 PM IST
The Indian Air Force officer has been suffering from fever for the past many days and was also admitted to the Air Force Hospital in Kanpur. His blood samples were collected and sent to NIV Pune after he began showing mysterious symptoms.
Uttar Pradesh on Sunday reported the first case of Zika virus, a health official told news agency PTI. The case has been reported from Kanpur after a warrant officer in the Indian Air Force (IAF) was diagnosed with it.
Apart from Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Maharashtra have also reported cases of Zika virus. (AP Photo)
The officer, Kanpur chief medical officer (CMO) Nepal Singh said, has been suffering from fever for the past many days and was also admitted to the Air Force Hospital in the city. He added that the officer’s blood sample was collected and was sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune after the latter began showing some mysterious symptoms.
The PTI report further quoted Singh as saying that the Zika virus positive report of the warrant officer was received by Kanpur authorities on Saturday.
Subsequently, as many as 22 samples of people the patient came in contact with have been sent to NIV for examination, Singh told PTI.
Officials of health and civic bodies have also been put on alert in order to contain the situation. Furthermore, several teams have also been appointed to stop the spread of the virus in the state.
Kerala was the first state to have reported a case of Zika virus in a pregnant woman on July 8, following which a high alert was issued in the state. In August, Maharashtra reported its first case after a 50-year-old woman from Pune’s Purandar tehsil tested positive for the infection. So far, Kerala has reported more than 60 Zika virus cases, state health minister Veena George said in an official statement.