India Escalates Response to Nipah Virus Outbreak in Kozhikode

KOZHIKODE: The administrative response to the Nipah crisis in Kozhikode has shifted to top gear with a ministerial review meeting and an assessment by a specialist team from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The mobilisation comes at a time when the region is experiencing a mix of clinical relief and escalating political turbulence. Health Minister K Muraleedharan has confirmed that three close relatives of the active Nipah patient have tested negative at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. Despite this positive development, epidemiological tracking continues at full throttle. Health officials added 13 new individuals to the contact list and moved four more into institutional isolation for rigorous observation. The total contact list has now expanded to exactly 100 people, which includes four individuals in the very high-risk category, 14 as high-risk, and 82 under low-risk. Meanwhile, health surveillance teams successfully completed a comprehensive house-to-house health survey across all 320 residential properties within division 5 of the Ramanattukara municipality to check for potential transmission links. To reinforce containment operations, Revenue Minister A P Anil Kumar, who currently holds organisational charge of the district, chaired a high-level strategy session in the district collector’s chamber.