Patna, Jul 26 (PTI) The Bihar government has directed health department officials to remain on alert as four monkeypox cases have been reported in other parts of the country till July 24, an official said on Tuesday.State Health Minister Mangal Pandey had on Monday held a high-level meeting with senior officials of his department and directed them to make people aware of symptoms of the viral zoonotic disease as per the guidelines of the central government and the World Health Organisation (WHO).The disease has symptoms similar to smallpox, although it has less clinical severity, an expert said.No monkeypox case has so far been found in Bihar."Health officers have been asked to step up surveillance, isolate symptomatic travellers from monkeypox-affected countries and send their samples to the National Institute of Virology, Pune. The minister has also directed them to follow the standard operating procedures while dealing with the infectious diseases," the official said.With many countries reporting monkeypox cases, the Union Health Ministry advised all states to direct hospitals to watch out for symptomatic patients, who have travelled to the monkeypox-affected countries recently, and isolate them at designated healthcare facilities.The World Health Organisation had on July 23 declared monkeypox a global public health emergency of international concern.More than 16,000 cases of the disease have been reported from 75 countries till July 24 and there have been five deaths so far as a result of the outbreak. PTI PKD BDC BDC