Samples of 13 people tested Nipah negative, says Kerala health minister

Kerala Health Minister Veena George said on Tuesday that 13 people who came into contact with a 24-year-old man who died from the Nipah virus in Malappuram district last week have tested negative for the disease. Of the total 175 people on the contact list of the deceased man, the samples of 13 people, comprised in the high risk category, were tested negative at the Manjeri Government Medical College in Malappuram, she told reporters here. The minister said the health department is making all possible attempts to check the spread of the disease by identifying a maximum number of persons who had been in his contact, and giving them preventive medicine. "The samples of those in the high risk category and the persons showing any symptoms are being collected and sent for testing. Samples of more people will be collected today," she said. Though the chance of any spread of the disease is unlikely, the samples of every person showing symptoms would be tested, she said. George further sa