Health care experts are concerned about the double blow that Kerala is facing. Even as the state tops in Covid-19 numbers across the country, the Nipah virus claimed the life of a 12-year-old from Kozhikode and over 188 are under observation, after two health care workers testing positive and were in contact with those under observation. They said it is time for Mumbai and Maharashtra, to be alert, especially with the coming festivals.

Dr Wiqar Shaikh, professor of Medicine, Grant Medical College and Sir J.J. Group of Hospitals has said that the Nipah Virus (NiV) was first discovered in 1999 following an outbreak of the disease in pigs and human beings in Malaysia and Singapore, resulting in 300 human cases and more than 100 deaths. At least 1 million pigs were then killed to help control the outbreak. Since then, NiV outbreaks have been recorded annually in Bangladesh and India. The first case of NiV was detected in Siliguri in 2001, when 45 people died due to the outbreak.