BENGALURU: With Covid cases emerging in educational institutes, with at least 55 out of 386-plus cases reported so far coming from schools, the Education Department is yet to discuss about closing them.
Speaking to TNIE, Nagesh said there has been no discussion within the department on school closures, nor with the Technical Advisory Committee.
However, considering the global situation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to the CM and advised all department heads to be cautious. The Chief minister has done the same, he added. Meanwhile, testing will continue at borders. “We are watching the schools carefully, as the students have not been vaccinated.”
As for students who have to cross borders and come to schools in Karnataka, he said a majority of them come to higher education institutes and are told to get an RTPCR test every seven days. “Not even a single student or elderly person tested positive in Dakshina Kannada, which is astonishing,” he said.
For school students who come from across the border, he said, “Schoolers are not forced to get an RT-PCR test, but testing has been done on students as well. Many schools have tested their students,” He recalled that recently, one lakh persons were tested in Tumakuru district and there were almost no positive cases. The Technical Advisory Committee was expected to apprise the CM on Monday and whatever decision is taken, it will be followed, he added.