Delhi man tests positive for monkeypox, 4th case in India: Report
New Delhi/IBNS: The national capital on Sunday reported the first case of monkeypox, making it the fourth in India, media reports said.
The man is a resident of West Delhi and has been hospitalised.
The previous three cases of the virus have been reported from Kerala.
Sixteen laboratories are now dedicated to monkeypox testing, including two only for Kerala.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the rapidly spreading monkeypox disease a global health emergency, which is its highest level of alert, WHO's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Saturday.
A "public health emergency of international concern" by WHO alerts countries across the world that a coordinated response is required and can prompt agencies to fund and collaborate on sharing information, vaccines and treatments.
Members of an expert committee that met on Thursday to discuss whether the monkeypox outbreak should be declared a global emergency.
According to a Reuters report, Tedros told a press conference in Geneva on Saturday that the committee had failed to reach a consensus, with nine members against and six in favour of the declaration.Â
The report said that Tedros decided to back the highest level of alert due to concerns over escalating case rates and a short supply of vaccines and treatments, despite the lack of a majority opinion.
🚨 BREAKING:
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) July 23, 2022
"For all of these reasons, I have decided that the global #monkeypox outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern."-@DrTedros pic.twitter.com/qvmYX1ZBAL
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