Kolkata, Jan 12 : Two suspected cases of Nipah virus disease were identified on January 11 at the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (VRDL), ICMR, AIIMS Kalyani in West Bengal.

Both the affected persons are nurses and are currently undergoing treatment at a private hospital, West Bengal Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty and state Health Secretary Narayan Swoop Nigam confirmed on Monday.

They said the state health department is keeping a close watch on the situation and is trying to trace the persons who came in contact with the two nurses after they were suspected to have been affected by the Nipah virus.

Both the nurses are attached to a hospital at Barasat, the district headquarters of North 24 Parganas. Both are now admitted to the intensive care unit of a private hospital.

One is a resident of Nadia district and the other is a resident of East Burdwan district. Hence, attempts to trace the persons who came in contact with them after they were suspected to have been affected are mainly concentrated in Nadia, East Burdwan and North 24 Parganas districts.

Immediately upon receipt of information, the Union Health Secretary held discussions with Chakraborty and Nigam to review the situation and ensure swift and coordinated action.

A national joint outbreak response team has been deployed to support the state government in containment and public health response measures.

The team comprises experts from the All India Institute of Health and Public Hygiene, Kolkata; National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune; National Institute of Epidemiology (NIE), Chennai; AIIMS Kalyani; and the Department of Wildlife, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

It is learnt that the Union governmentâ??s guidelines on Nipah Virus Disease under the Communicable Disease Alert have been shared with the State Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) unit.

In addition, the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) at the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Delhi, has been activated to coordinate the national response.

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda has written to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, assuring full support from the Union government.

J.P. Nadda also spoke to the Chief Minister over the telephone and reiterated the Centreâ??s commitment to extend all necessary assistance to the state in managing the situation, according to a statement issued by the Union health ministry.

/IANS