Nipah threat: Don’t travel to Kerala, warns Health Dept.

Bengaluru:  Amidst rising concerns about the ‘Nipah virus’ (NiV) following an outbreak in Kerala, the State Health and Family Welfare Department has issued a list of precautionary measures for the public, which includes avoiding cut fruits sold on the roadside, unprocessed dry fruits or unprocessed date palm juice.

Also, the Tourism Department is advising people to avoid visiting God’s Own Country — Kerala. The Department has advised people to avoid visiting Kerala, especially four districts — Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad and Kannur — where cases of Nipah infection have been reported.

The Department has said that since it was a communicable disease, those who travel to Kerala may carry the virus to Karnataka. “Tourists should avoid visiting Kerala this season. In case of emergency, those travelling there should be extremely careful,” an official said.

T.K. Anil Kumar, Secretary to the Department of Tourism, said they will co-ordinate with their counterparts in the Health Department on the safety measures that need to be taken. People should take the advice of the health officials seriously. The two Departments will discuss as to how and where tourists from Kerala can be screened. The  Departments are taking stock of the number of tourists, the entry and exit points. They are collecting data from various stakeholders on the tourist inflow.

In its advisory, the Health Department also recommends avoiding drinking toddy/ Neera, consuming fruits bitten by birds and animals, fruits that have fallen from trees, coming in contact with infected pigs, and rubbing eyes with unclean hands. It also suggests keeping wells covered with a mesh to prevent entry of bats, and boiling water from the well before drinking it.

Meanwhile, travel agents have already started witnessing cancellations and drop in bookings to Kerala. They point that not only leisure travel, corporate bookings too have come to a halt. Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) officials said bookings to Kerala had taken a beating soon after the news of the virus spread. Inquiries pertaining to cancellation of bookings were on the rise, he added.