Tirunelveli: At least eight students at a private engineering college in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district have been diagnosed with leptospirosis, commonly known as rat fever. The affected students are currently receiving medical treatment at a nearby hospital. The district health department conducted an inspection of the college hostel premises and discovered that the illness may have been caused by the use of contaminated water.

In response to the outbreak, the college administration has been instructed to close the institution temporarily until comprehensive sanitation measures are implemented.

The alarm was raised when a student from the Uvari area was hospitalized in Nagercoil with a persistent fever. Medical tests confirmed a diagnosis of leptospirosis, a bacterial infection typic

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