Latest news with #KFD
Time of India
05-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Kyasanur forest disease: What you must know about ‘monkey fever' in Goa
Have you ever heard of Kyasanur forest disease, or KFD? If not, you are not alone. But if you live or work in or near a forested area in Goa, this is a disease worth knowing about. KFD is a viral illness that spreads between animals and humans; experts call this a zoonotic disease. Specifically, it is transmitted by infected ticks that live in forested areas and feed on several types of animals, including mice, monkeys, and cattle. World Zoonoses Day falls on Sunday. As for monkeys, in contrast to other animals, infected monkeys can also develop visible disease symptoms, which is why the disease is also sometimes called monkey fever. Symptoms of KFD can include high fever, body aches, vomiting, and in severe cases, internal bleeding, and even death. Once a person gets sick, doctors can only help alleviate the symptoms but not treat the virus directly. The best approach is therefore to avoid an infection in the first place. In Goa, KFD has affected communities who live or work near forests, especially cashew farmers, although steps have already been taken over the past years to control the disease. These farms are often located right at the edge of a forest, where people are more likely to come into contact with infected ticks. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo People are at higher risk when they enter forested areas for activities like farming, collecting firewood, or taking animals out for grazing. The risk is also linked to environmental changes, like the expansion of settlements or plantations into previously forested areas, which brings people, ticks, and wildlife into closer contact. Simple measures like wearing full-sleeved clothing, using tick repellents, and thoroughly checking for ticks after time outdoors can make a big difference and reduce the risk of getting infected with KFD. To curb infection and respond effectively, the One Health & Agroecology Project is working in Sattari taluka in North Goa to bring people and institutions together. This project is a collaborative initiative by Indian and German govts, and Goa is one of the states where activities are carried out according to the 'One Health' approach. This concept recognises that the health of people, animals, and ecosystems is closely connected. In practice, the project brings to panchayats the collaboration of forest, environment, animal husbandry, and public health departments. The project works to improve tick surveillance, promote early disease detection, develop clear procedures for outbreak response, and raise awareness through community outreach. Most importantly, it supports members of local communities to protect themselves better, because they are the first line of defence. This World Zoonoses Day is a reminder that our health does not exist in isolation. When we look after forests, animals, and communities together through science, cooperation, and local knowledge, we all stay safer. The writers are Dr Pradip Sarmokadam of Goa State Biodiversity Board, and Dr Angela Schug and Dr Stefanie Preuss from Indo-German Development Cooperation
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Centre joins German govt to study, curb KFD in Goa
Panaji: Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD), also known as monkey disease, emerged in Goa in March 2015. The state reported one death in 2015 and three deaths in 2016. The health department controlled the disease after over 460 cases through various measures. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Currently, regions in Goa, along with Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka, are included in the central govt's pilot project on KFD. The pilot project aims to create awareness in villages located in the foothills of the Western Ghats, particularly in parts of Sattari, Goa. Additionally, the project will examine the relationship between altered biodiversity and KFD for the first time. The six-month study's findings will assist the Centre in preventing similar disease outbreaks nationwide. Pradip Sarmokadam, member secretary of the Goa State Biodiversity Board, said the increase in KFD cases in Goa occurred during the cashew plucking season. He noted that ticks on certain plants contribute to the disease's spread. 'It will be seen under the project if some of these plants that are made home by the ticks can be eliminated or reduced from the environment in the villagers of Sattari at the foothills of the Western Ghats, where there is history of KFD,' Sarmokadam said. The state established a committee on zoonosis for the first time. Sarmokadam added, 'The project is being taken up under govt of India's One Health Mission and GIZ of the German govt. It will aim to eliminate the roots of such diseases, ensure better preparedness to tackle them, and mobilise local people and biodiversity management committees to bring in behavioural changes in the locals through awareness etc to prevent KFD.
Deccan Herald
24-05-2025
- Health
- Deccan Herald
74-yr-old woman dies of monkey fever in Karnataka's Honnavar taluk
KFD was first identified in the Kyasanur Forest in 1957, and is primarily transmitted through tick bites, especially from the hard tick Haemaphysalis spinigera.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Time of India
Sign on the dotted line awaited
wildlife forensic science Karnataka Forest Department Wildlife Institute of India Karnataka's firstlaboratory in Bengaluru will take a few more months to become operational, the(KFD) has to KFD officials, an MoU with the(WII) to obtain representative samples for the laboratory in Madiwala is still in progress.'The laboratory has all the equipment needed to run forensic analysis, except representative samples. The MoU with WII in this regard is yet to take shape. We have written to the institute, and the process is expected to be completed over the next two to three KFD has collected some samples, they are not sufficient,' said Subhash K Malkhede, Chief Wildlife Warden of of six field staff in wildlife forensic cases has already been completed. Out of the six officials, two were sent to the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, and four took training in the Wildlife Forensic Science Centre in Tamil the Rs 2.7-crore project was last expected to be ready by April. The project was approved a couple of years ago and is being set up to improve the conviction rate in wildlife crime cases. Once operational, the facility, equipped with modern techniques and equipment, will provide analysis and reports to aid investigations, including DNA analysis and morphological Department is currently dependent on the Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad, the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun, and the Tamil Nadu Forest Department for analysis of samples. Those analyses that require quick results are being sent to the Institute of Animal Health and Veterinary Biologicals (IAH&VB) in Hebbal and the local forensic activists and experts say the forest department must ensure that the wildlife forensic sciences laboratory in Bengaluru is functional sooner rather than later.'For any sample analysis to be done locally, the department is dependent on labs associated with institutes and organisations that conduct these analyses pro bono. Thus, a report that can arrive in 48 hours takes department is also struggling with thousands of wildlife offense cases, many of which could have received their logical end given an in-house wildlife forensic laboratory. The lab in Madiwala should be fully equipped and functional as soon as possible,' said a wildlife of December 2024, more than 4,000 wildlife offence cases are pending in Karnataka.
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Twenty-two occupants affected by fire at Knoxville apartment complex
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Twenty-two occupants were affected by a fire at Spring Meadow Apartment Complex, a Knoxville Fire Department spokesperson said. The Knox County Emergency Communications District received multiple 911 calls around 5:15 p.m. Saturday reporting a fire on the second floor of building 900 in the Spring Meadow Apartment Complex. Someone also pulled a fire alarm. When a KFD engine arrived, they found heavy fire coming from the roof and rear of the building. Car crashes into Domino's on Broadway in Knoxville 'KFD crews immediately began firefight efforts,' a KFD spokesperson said. 'However, crews were pushed back by heavy fire.' The incident commander called for two ladder trucks, and they had to get an additional water supply across Washinton Pike which required them to briefly close the road. They were able to gain control of the fire within 40 minutes after the initial alarm. There were no injuries reported, but one firefighter was treated and released on the scene because of a minor medical issue, KFD said. Woman shares her experience with the 4.1 magnitude earthquake in East Tennessee Apartment management and the American Red Cross are assisting the twenty-two occupants affected by the fire, KFD wrote. Of the building's eight units, four suffered heavy fire, water and smoke damage, while the other four had smoke damage. KFD investigators are working to determine the cause, the department said Saturday evening. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
