West Bengal – West Bengal has reported its first fatality linked to Nipah virus complications after a 25‑year‑old nurse died during treatment at Narayana Multispeciality Hospital in Barasat on February 12, 2026. Health officials said she had been in a coma for an extended period following her diagnosis and later developed a severe lung infection along with a hospital‑acquired infection. Despite intensive care, she suffered cardiac arrest and could not be revived.
The state had earlier confirmed two Nipah cases between December 2025 and January 2026, both involving nursing staff at a private hospital in Barasat. One of them, a male nurse, recovered fully and was discharged in January. The female nurse, however, remained in critical condition until her death. She was initially admitted to the intensive care unit and later shifted to the cardiac care unit, where she was placed on ventilator support. Although subsequent tests showed she was no longer positive for Nipah, complications stemming from the infection prevented her recovery.
According to reports, the nurse had gone home on December 31, 2025, during the New Year holidays. Her health deteriorated suddenly in early January, leading to admission at Bardhaman Medical College and Hospital. As her condition worsened, she was referred to the Barasat facility where she remained under treatment until her death.
Officials from the Health Ministry have clarified that the death was not caused by Nipah virus alone, but by the serious complications that followed the infection. The National Centre for Disease Control has confirmed that two Nipah cases were detected in West Bengal since December 2025, with one patient recovering and the other succumbing to illness.
