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Kerala Nipah virus case: 43-year-old man critical in Kozhikode, hospital staff quarantined
The patient rented a godown and cleaned it. There is a possibility of the presence of fruit bats — which are natural host of Nipah virus —in the area, said the Kerala health minister
- PUBLISHED: Thu 11 Jun 2026, 12:22 PM
A new case of Nipah virus was detected in Kerala after a preliminary test of the infection on a 43-year-old man returned positive. Hospital sources told the media on Thursday that the man is critical and on ventilator support at the government medical college in Kozhikode.
State health minister K. Muraleedharan told reporters that the patient, a smalltime businessman, had contact with many people at the hospital where he had gone for an MRI scan.
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“All the hospital staff have been told to go on quarantine,” said Muraleedharan. The patient had rented a godown and had cleaned it. “There is a possibility of the presence of fruit bats in the area,” said the minister.
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What is Nipah virus
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), fruits bats are considered the natural host of Nipah virus.
“Transmission of the virus to humans can occur from direct contact with infected animals like bats, or horses, and by consuming fruits or fruit products, such as raw date palm juice, contaminated by infected fruit bats,” said a WHO release.
“Nipah virus can also spread between people. It has been reported in health-care settings and among family and caregivers of sick people through close contact. In health facilities, the risk of spread can increase in overcrowded, poorly ventilated hospital environments with inadequate implementation of infection prevention and control measures.”
Previous cases
The zoonotic disease was first detected in Kozhikode district Kerala in 2018. Seventeen of the 18 people infected with it succumbed to the deadly disease.
The state has so far reported 24 deaths of people having got infected with the disease, which is now seen emerging during the monsoon months. The disease spreads from animal-human contact, consuming fruits and other stuff contaminated with the urine or saliva of infected fruit bats and also person-to-person transmission, especially among healthcare workers.
Kerala has developed a formidable surveillance and response system following the outbreaks in recent years. Besides the southern state, West Bengal has also seen several cases. The first in 2001was in Siliguri in the state, which saw 45 deaths. West Bengal reported five deaths in 2007.
The WHO said the first Nipah virus was identified in Malaysia in 1998 and the following year in Singapore. But no new outbreaks have been reported from the two countries since 1999.
Cases emerged in India and Bangladesh in 2001, and in the Philippines in 2014. At present, there is no vaccine or medication to cure patients with the Nipah virus.
