The 52-year-old NRI, who was suspected to have contracted the flu, died shortly after he was admitted to a hospital in Kerala's Kollam district on Wednesday night, Health officials said.

The throat swabs of Stanley Pelis, who arrived in Kerala two weeks ago from the UK, have been sent to the National Institute of Communicable diseases, New Delhi. If confirmed, he would be the first victim of the flu in the country.

Pelis, hailing from Kollam, was admitted to Holy Cross Hospital at Kottayam with high fever and breathlessness at around 7 p.m. on Wednesday and died after two hours, Dr K Shylaja, Medical Director, said.

The four new cases are reported from Gurgaon, Bangalore, Pune and Kochi.