India confirmed its first monkeypox case in Kerala.
A majority of these cases have been reported from the European region (86 per cent) and the Americas (11 per cent).
Monkeypox is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals).
Its symptoms are similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients.
With the eradication of smallpox in 1980 and the subsequent cessation of smallpox vaccination, monkeypox has emerged as the most important orthopoxvirus for public health.