Fifteen more persons on the contact list of Mohammed Hashim of Chathamangalam in Kozhikode have turned negative for Nipah a week after his death.
Health Minister Veena George told the media in Pathanamthitta on Sunday morning that so far 123 samples were found to have no presence of the virus. She said efforts to trace the source of the infection were continuing. A report from officials of the National Institute of Virology, who are collecting more samples from Hashim’s village and adjoining areas, is expected in two days.
Sero prevalence survey would be conducted among children ahead of reopening of schools, she said.
Meanwhile, M.K. Raghavan, MP, sought financial help for the family of Hashim. In a release, he recalled that the State government had declared ₹5 lakh assistance for the families of the 17 persons who had died in the first outbreak in Kozhikode in 2018.
In a letter to the Chief Minister after visiting Pazhoor village where the boy’s house is located, Mr. Raghavan said that similar help from the distress relief fund should be declared this time too. The MP also demanded that free ration be made available for the residents of the village and adjoining wards which had been declared containment zone after the death.
