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Nipah virus: Chandigarh health dept asks hotels to keep a check on travellers
It has asked all hotels to keep a check on travellers from Kerela, and alerted animal husbandry officials to maintain a vigil.
In the wake of deaths due to Nipah virus in northern Kerala’s Kozhikode, the Chandigarh health department has sounded an alert here. It has asked all hotels to keep a check on travellers from the southern state, and alerted animal husbandry officials to maintain a vigil.
However, health department officials said there was no need to panic as no Nipah virus case has been reported in the tricity.
“We have informally sounded an alert and have informed all hoteliers in the city to keep a check on travellers visiting from Kerala and West Bengal. A formal advisory, signed by director health services, will also be issued soon,” said Dr Upendrajeet Singh Gill, assistant director, Malaria wing, UT.
He said that even officers from animal husbandry department had been informed to stay alert with preventive measures.
Know the virus
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines Nipah virus infection as a newly emerging zoonosis that causes severe disease in both animals and humans. The natural host of the virus are fruit bats. Even human-to-human infection has been documented.
The virus spread among humans and animals by consuming food and fluids contaminated with saliva and droppings of the infected bats.
Nipah virus was first identified during an outbreak of the disease in Kampung Sungai Nipah, Malaysia in 1998. The virus got its name from this village.
The infection can be both asymptomatic and present symptoms, including fever, headache, drowsiness, disorientation, mental confusion, coma, that can potentially lead to death.
As per WHO, there is no specific treatment for Nipah virus. The primary treatment for humans is intensive supportive care.
