With the return of monsoon season, beginning late May or early June, H1N1 influenza has returned to India. In the southwestern state of Kerala, 17 cases were confirmed this week in the Pathanamthitta and Alapphuzha districts. The Alapphuza district alone has seen 25 cases since the start of the monsoon season. Across Kerala, dozens are under quarantine, both at home and in hospitals, in efforts to stem the spread of the disease. Elsewhere in India, in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, officials confirmed the state’s first death from H1N1. As a precaution, extensive screening efforts are being made in the Jhalawar district, the home of the victim.
