Subhash Rajat
Shimla, July 25
Health officials say the Delhi man who contracted monkeypox during his visit here in late June is unlikely to infect anyone in Himachal. Hemraj Bairwa, MD, National Health Mission, said, “The maximum incubation period of the disease is 21 days and if anyone had contracted the infection from him, the case would have come to the fore by now.”
“He was in the state in the last week of June, and already 25 days have passed in the month of July. Hence, it is unlikely that anyone might have caught the infection from him,” Bairwa said.
Apart from confirming the presence of the infected person in the state in late June, health officials have little information about the person’s itinerary. “We have sought information from the Union Health Ministry about the places he had visited and the people with whom he came in contact. Once we get the information, we will proceed as per the guidelines,” Bairwa said, adding that the presence of the person in Manali is also yet to be confirmed.
Even after no suspected case of monkeypox has been reported in the state so far, the NHM has put all the Chief Medical Officers on alert. “If a person has a rash or sores, he should get it checked out at the nearest medical facility. All CMOs have already been alerted in this regard.
He further said that select medical colleges have been reduced to zero to create isolation facilities for monkeypox patients. “If there is a monkeypox case in the state, we will have isolation facilities ready in select medical colleges for their treatment. Right now, no one needs to press the panic button,” Bairwa said.