Authorities in India’s southern Kerala state are battling to contain an outbreak of the Nipah virus amid the global COVID-19 pandemic. At least 11 people in the Indian state are believed to have contracted Nipah, a dangerous virus that is not related to COVID-19 and for which no vaccine currently exists. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) the Nipah virus (NiV) is a zoonotic virus, meaning it is transmitted from animals to humans and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly between people. In infected people, it causes a range of illnesses to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis, however, carriers can also be asymptomatic. The virus can also cause severe disease in animals such as pigs, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers. The rising infection rate comes just one day after 12-year-old Mohammed Hashim died from the Nipah virus at a private hospital in Kerala. The boy was admitted to hospital a week …