The National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), New Delhi has confirmed the presence of Hanta virus due to which 52-year-old Bhagwan Rao of Karimnagar died at a private hospital in the State capital.
Officials in Health Department said that tests conducted by NICD on samples collected from deceased tested positive for Hanta virus.
Earlier, test on samples conducted by a Mumbai-based private laboratory, on behalf of Yashoda Hospitals where Mr. Bhagwan Rao was admitted, had tested positive. The health authorities, however, refused to treat it as a case of ‘Hanta virus' till the tests by a government-run laboratory were conducted.
On Wednesday, health officials said that the samples, which were first sent to National Institute of Virology (NIV), were later on sent to NICD for testing. Health authorities, however, asserted that the virus was highly localised and did not show any signs of spreading to other parts of the district.
“There is no need to panic because it is not showing any signs of spreading from humans to humans. Public should realise that this is a very rare case and there is no need to panic over it,” health officials maintained.
