UP's Kanpur Records 10 New Zika Virus Cases; Total Stands at 89

The first case of Zika in Kanpur was detected on 23 October and the number has been increasing steadily since then.

In a surge of cases, 10 more people, including three Indian Air Force personnel, tested positive for the Zika virus in Kanpur on Sunday, 7 November. Image used for representational purposes. 

(Photo: iStockphoto)

In a surge of cases, 10 more people, including three Indian Air Force personnel, tested positive for the Zika virus in Kanpur on Sunday, 7 November.

This takes the total number of cases in Kanpur district to 89, news agency PTI reported, quoting District Magistrate Vishak G Ayyar.

The first case of Zika in the district was detected on 23 October and the number has been increasing steadily since then.

The district administration has stepped up surveillance to check its spread, health officials said, according to IANS.

Dr Nepal Singh, chief medical officer of Kanpur district told Reuters that amid the surge in cases of the virus, the health department has formed several teams to contain the situation.

On Saturday, 6 November, 13 people had tested positive for Zika virus, taking the district's tally to 79.

Zika Virus Now Detected in Kannauj

Meanwhile, even as cases rise in Kanpur, a confirmed case has now been found in Uttar Pradesh's Kannauj district, reported IANS.

According to health officials, a 45-year-old man in Kannauj was detected with the virus on Saturday. The man may have contracted the virus from Kasamau village in Shivrajpur area of Kanpur, that he visited recently, according to health officials.

Zika is a mosquito-borne virus that spreads through the bite of an infected Aedes species of mosquito, which bites during the day.

Symptoms of this disease are mild fever, rashes, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, and headache.

(With inputs from PTI, IANS and Reuters.)