Overview
- By June 12 the state health department had confirmed about 132 Shigella infections this year and reported that three deaths have now been attributed to shigellosis.
- A cluster at an aided school in Wayanad has grown to 16 confirmed student cases after seven new positives were reported and tests found heavy bacterial contamination in the school’s well.
- Food safety authorities isolated Shigella from a sample of locally made pineapple juice at a Thiruvananthapuram bakery, which was ordered closed pending further action.
- Health Minister K. Muraleedharan has said hundreds statewide showed symptoms with 55 people hospitalised, and the government has begun special chlorination drives, intensified food-safety checks, and declared school holidays in affected areas.
- Officials warn the monsoon’s waterlogging and poor sanitation are raising multiple communicable diseases across Kerala and say residents should boil or chlorinate drinking water, practise strict hand hygiene, avoid risky raw foods, and seek prompt medical care to limit spread.