A 43-year-old man from Kerala’s Kozhikode district has been admitted to an isolation ward after preliminary tests indicated a Nipah virus infection, marking the state’s first suspected case of the disease this year.
The patient, who developed symptoms several days ago, tested positive at a laboratory attached to the Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode. However, officials said final confirmation is awaited from the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, where samples have been sent for verification.
Following the suspected case, the Kerala Health Department has activated Nipah containment protocols, including identifying and isolating the patient’s primary contacts and declaring a containment zone.
Kerala Health Minister K. Muralidharan on Thursday said the suspected Nipah case in Kozhikode had tested positive during preliminary screening and that samples had been forwarded to NIV Pune for confirmation.
He said precautionary measures had been implemented, including providing personal protective equipment (PPE) kits to medical college staff. The patient will be shifted to the medical college hospital, he added.
Residents of Ramanattukara municipality have been advised to wear masks in public places and follow social distancing measures.
According to health officials, the patient is a trader whose warehouse is located near a densely vegetated area. He reportedly noticed a large number of fruit bats inside the godown when he reopened it after remaining closed for an extended period.
Fruit bats are considered the natural reservoir of the Nipah virus and have been linked to previous outbreaks in Kerala.
Kerala first reported Nipah virus infections in 2018, when an outbreak in Kozhikode infected 18 people and claimed 17 lives. Since then, the state has witnessed periodic outbreaks, including one death in 2021, two deaths each in 2023 and 2024, and four cases in 2025, two of which were fatal. The cumulative death toll from Nipah in Kerala since 2018 stands at 24.
Most outbreaks have occurred between May and September, coinciding with the monsoon season.
Health experts said early detection of Nipah remains challenging as initial symptoms often resemble seasonal viral fevers and influenza, which are common during this period.
Investigations into previous outbreaks have repeatedly pointed to fruit bats as the source of infection.
A study on the 2018 outbreak found that the index patient likely contracted the virus from bats, while subsequent cases resulted from human-to-human transmission in a hospital setting.
Researchers also identified the strain circulating in Kerala as the Bangladesh variant, which is associated with a high fatality rate.
A field survey conducted by the National Institute of Virology and the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases following a Nipah-related death in 2024 detected antibodies to the virus in fruit bats collected from the affected area.
The Nipah alert comes at a time when Kerala is also dealing with a recent shigella outbreak that has affected schoolchildren in several districts, prompting health authorities to intensify surveillance and preventive measures.