By Shuriah Niazi

NEW DELHI

India’s Kerala state has declared Kozhikode and Malappuram districts free of the Nipah virus after 17 people there succumbed to it in May. 

Health Minister KK Shailaja announced that the two districts were Nipah-free on Sunday at a function organized by the state’s health department. 

“No fresh cases were reported in these two affected districts after May 31 and till the completion of the incubation period, which ended on June 30,” Shailaja said in a press statement issued by the department. 

He also felicitated medical staff who were involved in the fight against the spread of the virus in the area. 

Sajeesh, husband of Lini Puthuserry, a nurse who died after contracting the virus while treating patients, also accepted an award on her behalf for her work to contain the spread of the virus.

The Indian government on May 20 notified the World Health Organization of a confirmed outbreak of Nipah virus in Kozhikode after it was confirmed by the National Institute of Virology in Pune. Nineteen cases of the disease were reported in May from Kerala state and 17 of them died.

However, authorities were successful in containing the transmission of the virus due to the swift response of the state and central governments. 

The Nipah virus, which can damage the brain, was first identified in Malaysia in 1998.