Medical personnel wearing protective suits check patients at the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode. Pic/AFP

As worry over the new epidemic of Nipah virus (NiV) in Kerala infects the country, state health minister Dr Deepak Sawant has reassured citizens that there is no case in the city or state. As a precaution though, the government has directed setting up an isolation ward at Kasturba Hospital. So far, 10 have succumbed to it, two are undergoing treatment and 94-odd have been quarantined at their homes in the southern state.