Alappuzha: An old tree in the town housing hundreds of bats has raised concern among the local people with the confirmation of Nipah virus infection in a patient in Ernakulam. Bats and pigs are carriers of the deadly virus which spreads among humans.
Fleets of bats hang from the tree that stands near the south police station. The residents have asked the district administration to cut down the branches to drive away the bats.
L. Anithakumari, district medical officer, allayed the fears of the residents and said there was no confirmation whether the present virus was spread by bats. A meeting of the district administration chaired by the district collector on Sunday decided not to disturb the habitat of bats in the district as of now. “If we disturb them, we can’t predict where they would go and land. There will be difficulty in tracking them and taking precautionary measures,” she said.
The people staying near the tree should keep off it and avoid fruits that fall from the tree. There was nothing to worry about the bats on the tree, the DMO said.
The residents accused the municipality of disregarding their concerns. Kabeer, a resident, said the municipal administration had ignored the district collector’s order to cut down the branches of the tree some time ago.
“I had taken up the issue with the collector years ago and he ordered to raze the branches. But the municipal authorities refused to comply with the order citing agitation by environmentalists. We are scared of these bats hanging from the tree in large numbers,” he said.
The Medical College Hospital has opened an isolation ward to deal with any emergency situation.
