Kerala, which is grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic with the caseload of 6.5 lakh and the death toll of 2,507, on Thursday reported a rare type of malarial infection at a district Hospital in Kannur.

The patient, a soldier who had returned from a sub-Saharan African country Sudan, was found to be infected with plasmodium ovale — a rare species of parasitic protozoa that causes malaria.

“Plasmodium ovale, a new genus of malaria, has been detected in the State. It was found in a soldier who was being treated at the District hospital in Kannur. The soldier had come from Sudan. The spread of the disease can be avoided with timely treatment and preventive measures,” Health Minister KK sailaja tweeted.

There are five types of malaria causing parasites. — Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium malaria, Plasmodium knowlesi and Plasmodium ovale. Among these, Plasmodium Vivax and Plasmodium Falciparum are the most common in India. Plasmodium ovale is generally found in Africa.

In 2018, the state had witnessed the outbreak of Nipah virus that claimed 17 lives before it was brought under control. Kerala had also in January this year reported India’s first COVID-19 case when a girl studying in China’s Wuhan returned home after the outbreak of the pandemic there.