Kerala issues statewide alert as monkeypox patient had co-passengers from five districts

Monkeypox alert: All the 164 passengers and six cabin crew members of the Indigo flight from Sharjah to Thiruvananthapuram on July 12 (GE 1402) have been advised to watch out for symptoms.

Thiruvananthapuram: A day after Kerala reported India’s first case of monkeypox, the state health department issued an alert to all 14 districts.

After a high-level meeting, Health Minister Veena George said on Friday that all districts had been alerted following the reporting of the monkeypox case. “People from five districts–Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Kottayam–travelled along with the infected person from the UAE. So a special alert has been issued to these districts. Health workers are in touch with these people to get updates on their health status. If required, they will be tested for monkeypox. Isolation units will be readied in all districts. However, there is no ground for panic,’’ said the minister.

George said the health condition of the confirmed case, a 35-year-old man from Kollam, was stable. Eleven of his contacts have been put under the high-risk category, she said.
All the 164 passengers and six cabin crew members of the Indigo flight from Sharjah to Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday (GE 1402) have been advised to watch out for symptoms and directed to contact health workers if they develop any symptoms within 21 days, the minister said.

She also said that police’s help had been sought to track down all the passengers