ROURKELA: In what seems to be the early signs of a third Covid wave, Sundargarh district reported 166 new positive cases on Wednesday with educational institutions battling cluster outbreaks. Of the fresh infections, Rourkela alone accounted for 127 Covid cases.
The rise in cases was a whopping 140 per cent as compared to Tuesday when Sundargarh recorded only 69 infections. Similarly, the test positivity rate (TPR) jumped to 4.20 per cent from 0.50 per cent five days back.
Chief district medical officer (CDMO) Dr SK Mishra said 36 students and one employee of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya at Sargipali tested positive for Covid on Tuesday. Initially, 10 students showed symptoms and following antigen test, they were found to be positive. During contact tracing, swab samples of 160 students were collected for RT-PCR test and 36 of them found positive.
He further informed that a health team on Tuesday evening insisted on isolation of the infected students in the hostel but parents demanded their children’s custody and took them home after giving written undertakings. Rapid response teams (RRTs) would keep a watch on the health condition of the students in home isolation.
Similarly, the National Institute of Technology-Rourkela (NIT-R) till Tuesday reported 23 Covid cases with at least half a dozen of professors including the in-charge Director testing positive. Sources said NIT-R is likely to report more Covid cases in the coming days as around 70 per cent of the total 110 professors from West Bengal had gone to their native places for winter vacation with their families from December 13. They returned to the campus by January 2.
These professors and their family members account for maximum number of positive cases on NIT-R campus. Though the students have to mandatorily produce Covid test report before entering the campus, there is no such protocol for NIT-R employees.
A reality check on Wednesday showed that majority of principals and employees of colleges and schools in the Steel City are not wearing masks or following safety protocols on campuses most of the time. The Covid-inappropriate behaviour of teachers is having a cascading effect on students who remain oblivious to safety measures.
Collector reviews coronavirus situation
Rourkela: In wake of the sudden spike in Covid cases, Sundargarh Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan held a review meeting with senior district officials on Wednesday to contain the infection spread. The Collector insisted on keeping a watch on people entering the district from outside with provisions for thermal scanning at railway stations and bus stands. Steps will be taken to restrict crowding at marketplaces along with strict adherence to Covid guidelines. The district health wing was asked to keep rapid response teams (RRTs) ready and revive the Covid care centres. Kalyan claimed that the administration is fully prepared to meet any exigency and hospitals across the district including Rourkela are ready to treat Covid patients. Adequate beds are being readied and sufficient testing kits available with the administration.
6 MBBS students infected
Jeypore: Six third year MBBS students of Saheed Laxman Naik Medical College in Koraput tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday. The infected students had no past travel history and were staying in the college hostel. Sources said they might have contracted the virus after coming in contact with Covid positive patient. The students have been shifted to isolation rooms. Samples of 120 of the total 500 students have been sent for test so far. Dean of the medical college Krushna Chandra Biswal said precautionary measures are being taken to check further spread of Covid among students. The health condition of the six infected students is normal.
Cases double in Puri
Puri: Covid infection rate in Puri doubled in the last 24 hours with the district reporting 30 new positive cases on Wednesday. Puri town alone accounted for 22 fresh cases. On Tuesday, the district had recorded 15 cases. A hotel in the town was declared a micro-containment zone after three cases were detected on its premises. Swab samples of all inmates of the hotel were sent for genome sequencing and the reports are awaited.