The recent reports of Nipah virus (NiV) infection resulting in a number of deaths have created panic and fear among the general public. The resource poor overpopulated countries like Bangladesh, India and Malaysia are hit by this virus infection a number of times in the past. The turmoil resulted due to the deadly infection has affected the tourism industry and has instilled fear among the local population. The infection was localized to the western part of India in the two past outbreaks, but this time it has affected the southern tip of India. The NiV is spread by the fruit eating bats either through aerosol mode or by consumption of the fruits infected with the bat saliva/urine. In the current paper the authors highlight this relatively new viral infection and emphasize on the proactive efforts to fight the spread of such deadly infections.
Keywords: Nipah virus; Viruses; Pteropus; Zoonoses.
