Nipah outbreak fallout: Bahrain, UAE ban fruit, vegetables from Kerala

The gulf region is India's largest overseas market for fruit exports

Countries from West Asia, including Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have now restricted the import of fresh fruits and vegetables from Kerala where the Nipah virus epidemic currently shows no sign of abatement killing 15 people till now.

The deadly brain damaging virus is contagious and currently has no vaccine for humans or animals. The natural host of the virus is a fruit bat of the Pteropodidae family, according to the World Health Organization. As a result, major nations, which import India’s fruits and vegetables, are now wary of the produce.

In a letter to the agriculture ministry, the government