Kolkata, February 14 (IANS). Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director General Dr Rajeev Bahl on Saturday praised the West Bengal government’s response to the recent Nipah virus case. He said the state has prevented its spread by working effectively in coordination with the Centre.
Dr Bahl made these comments during his visit to the ICMR-National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (ICMR-NIBMG) located in Kalyani area of Kolkata, where he unveiled the statue of Padma Vibhushan awardee Dr Dilip Mahalanabis.
Speaking on the situation of Nipah virus, Dr. Bahl said there is no need to panic, as the infection can be effectively controlled with timely surveillance and preventive measures.
He said cases of Nipah virus infection were reported in West Bengal in 2001 and 2007, as well as in Kerala, but the number of cases remained limited.
He further said that the proactive steps taken by the West Bengal government in surveillance and containment efforts are commendable.
Dr Bahl also said evidence of Nipah virus in bats has been found in several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Kerala, underscoring the importance of continued surveillance.
Recently, two nurses in West Bengal were found infected with Nipah virus, one of whom died during treatment at a hospital in Barasat in North 24 Parganas district.
State health department officials said contact tracing was conducted to identify the persons who came in contact with the infected nurses. Samples taken from the identified people were tested and the results were found negative.
Officials said that no new case of Nipah virus has been reported in the state so far.
Nipah virus is a dangerous infection that has been emerging from time to time in some parts of India, including West Bengal and Kerala.
This virus is spread mainly through close contact between fruit bats and humans.
–IANS
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