Nigerian man tests positive for monkeypox, third case in Delhi

Representation image (Photo: iStock)


The national capital has reported yet another case of monkeypox after a Nigerian man living in Delhi tested positive for Monkeypox.

This took the tally of the viral disease in Delhi to three, said official sources on Tuesday.

A 35-year-old Nigerian man living in Delhi, with no recent international travel history, tested positive for monkeypox.

In view of this, Delhi government on Tuesday directed three private hospitals to create 30 isolation rooms for monkeypox cases.

In a notification from the Delhi Directorate General Health Services, each of the three private hospitals — Kailash Deepak Hospital, MD city hospital and Batra hospital and Research Centre — have been asked to create 10 isolation rooms each, five for the management of suspected monkeypox cases and five for confirmed cases.

Besides Delhi, earlier in the day, one more case of Monkeypox has been reported in Kerala.

On July 30, the first death of Monkeypox was reported in the country. A 22-year-old man who had tested positive for Monkeypox in UAE arrived in India on July 22 and was admitted to a hospital on July 27 after again testing positive for Monkeypox.

The Centre has formed a task force in the wake of Monkeypox cases in India to monitor and provide guidance to the government on the expansion of diagnostic facilities and to explore vaccination for the infection in the country.

Meanwhile, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday, while speaking in Rajya Sabha urged citizens not to panic.

He said that an awareness campaign is being run in collaboration with the state governments to prevent the spread of the infection.