UT Khader Chairs Meeting on Nipah Virus and Monsoon Safety Preparations
Mangaluru: The District Minister-in-charge UT Khader and DC Sasikanth Senthil discussed various regional issues such as the Nipah virus as well as the monsoon preparedness level in a meeting held at the DC Office, Statebank here, on June 10. Representatives from other departments of the district administration such as the Health Department, Food Department, Education Department, Police Department, Forest Department, and NDRF representatives were all present at the meeting.
Addressing the gathering Khader said, “The Nipah virus is mostly spread through contaminated fruits. We have to instruct people to wash and clean the fruits properly before consumption. Our focus must be on schools and the education sector in general. We must instruct teachers to create awareness of the Nipah virus among the children. This way, the children will also go back home and teach their family members. Grocery shop owners must not take their customers for granted. They should put up notices and distribute pamphlets to educate the customers about the Nipah virus.”
Khader further said, “There has to be maximum effort in generating awareness and prevention of Nipah virus. The DC must also discuss with the DC of Kasargod district on how to prevent contaminated people from crossing over into our region. Since the symptoms for viral fever and Nipah virus are not that different, the people must not hesitate to get tested. It is not the time to take such risks.”
DC Sasikanth Senthil also suggested that the district administration should work by making an assumption that a Nipah virus case has already been detected. He further instructed the district officials to keep themselves abreast of all the immediate response protocols concerning the Nipah virus.
Later, UT Khader and DC Sasikanth Senthil met with representatives from the Police Department, Fire Department, and the NDRF in an attempt to gauge the flood preparedness level of the law-enforcement agencies. Khader emphasized the need for a collaborative exercise between life guards and the home guards patrolling Dakshina Kannada’s beaches.