BIDAR: A majority of teachers who took part in election-related duties recently have succumbed to Covid-19 in the district. Of the 53 education department staff who died of Covid in the district, a majority of them were deployed on election work. Bypolls to Basavakalyan assembly seat was held on April 17, followed by Bidar City Municipality polls on April 27.
Acting Deputy Director of Public Instructions T R Dodde told TNIE, “Of 1,500 employees of the department in the district, 200 employees, including DDPI Ganganna Swamy, tested positive for Covid and 53 employees succumbed to Covid in the past two months.”
“We cannot say that all teachers who were deputed for poll work contracted the virus and all the teachers who died due to Covid were on election duty. It is true that most of them were on poll duty. In Basavakalyan taluk alone, 16 teachers died due to Covid. However, they were not posted on poll duty. Of the 53 employees who died, 46 are teacher sand seven are non-teaching staff.
Eighteen victims are from Bidar taluk, 16 from Basavakalyan taluk, and seven each from Bhalki and Aurad taluks and five employees of Humnabad taluk,” he said. In other districts of Kalyana Karnataka, the death rate of employees (mostly teachers) of the department is not high compared to Bidar district.
In Kalyana Karnataka, 147 employees of the Public Instructions Department, including 130 teachers, died due to Covid. The department has provided money for performing the final rites, sources said.