12-year-old boy dies of Nipah virus in Natore

The 12-year-old who died on Monday, after getting ill from drinking raw date palm juice, was infected with the Nipah virus, Natore civil surgeon's office said.

Siam Hossain of Karamdoshi village in Natore's Bagatipara upazila was hospitalised on January 29, said his father Kamrul Islam.

He was first taken to Puthia Upazila Health Complex and later to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital.

He died the next day while undergoing treatment there.

Natore Civil Surgeon Dr Rozi Ara Khatun yesterday said the RMCH authorities had collected Siam's samples and sent them to Dhaka to test for Nipah virus.

From the results of the lab test, officials of the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research confirmed the presence of Nipah virus in his samples.

The case came to light after a six-member delegation from IEDCR visited Siam's family and collected samples from those who came in contact with him.

Bagatipara Upazila Health and Family Welfare Officer Dr Abdur Razzak also visited the Karamdoshi area along with the delegation.

Contacted, Natore Deputy Commissioner Shamim Ahmed said that a campaign would be launched to prevent the spread of Nipah virus.

"All public representatives have been instructed to raise public awareness," he added.