Fogging done to curb mosquitoes in Singapore. 13 Indians have been infected with Zika in the city state.
13 Indian nationals have tested positive for the Zika virus in Singapore, the Ministry of External Affairs has confirmed to NDTV.
"As per our High Commission in Singapore, 13 Indian nationals have tested positive for Zika virus in that country," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.
Foreign nationals including six Bangladeshis and 21 Chinese are among the 115 confirmed Zika infections in Singapore. The tiny island nation in the Indian Ocean has seen a surge in the number of Zika infections, after it declared its first case of a locally transmitted infection on August 27.
According to Singapore's Ministry of Health, instances of Zika infection have been reported by individuals who either resided or worked in Al Juneid or Sims Drive localities. The patients had not travelled abroad recently, thus confirming that they contracted the infection locally.
According to reports foreign construction workers in the city-state are the worst affected. However it is unclear whether the affected Indians work in the construction industry.
In February, the World Health Organisation had declared Zika a public health emergency. According to global health monitoring body, the virus is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, but can also spread through sexual contact. Its symptoms include mild fever, rashes on the body, joint ache, muscle spasms and severe headaches.
Infection in pregnant women can sometimes cause microcephaly, a rare birth defect in which infants are born with an abnormally small head.