CHIKKAMAGALURU: Even as fear of Omicron, variant of sars cov 2 looms in the state, COVID-19 infection was detected among 70 students of the Jawahar Navodaya Residential School at Seegodu near Balehonnur in NR Pura taluk has created added anxiety and tension in the district .
It all started on Friday when three students and four staff of the school were tested positive for COVID-19. Alarmed by this, the District Health Department officials on Saturday took the swab of 418 students and the staff and the test result showed that 40 of them had contracted coronavirus and tested positive.
Immediately, the district administration swung into action and pressed the health and nursing staff into service at the residential school. All the residents in the school were quarantined and the school was sealed down.
District Health Officer Umesh and District Surveillance Officer Dr Manjunath rushed to the spot and reviewed the situation. Again on Sunday, when the corona test was continued, another 30 students were tested positive, taking the total infected in the school to 70.
Speaking to TNIE , surveillance officer Dr Manjunath said the corona symptoms were not seen in all the corona infected inmates and all of them have asymptomatic signs. All the students are from within the state and even teachers have been on duty.
People, however, should not be complacent and have to follow guidelines and display covid appropriate behaviour, he added.
Mallegowda General Hospital physician Dr Chandrashekar said that due to vaccine and herd immunity, infectivity rate may be high but it is less virulent and less hazardous.