A total of 288 schoolchildren and 43 teachers in Dakshina Kannada district contracted the Covid-19 infection in the first 20 days of January, according to officials familiar with the matter. As many as 10 schools and colleges have been temporarily closed for a week after more than five positive cases were reported in each institution.
In the latest instances, classes for Class 10 at a private school in Mangaluru were suspended after a student tested positive on January 20. Prior to that, another English medium school switched to online classes after five students tested positive for the virus.
A CBSE affiliated school at Udane had reported that six students and one teacher had tested positive, while another school at Shiradi reported positive cases among three students. A school in Nelyadi also reported positive cases among six students on January 20, said Deputy Director of Public Instruction (DDPI) Sudhakar.
In a recent meeting, Deputy Commissioner Dr Rajendra K V directed the authorities to close schools for a week if more than five positive cases were reported. The DC had also directed the officials to sanitise the schools before reopening them.
Vaccination
The DDPI said that 45,682 students of classes 9 and 10 have been vaccinated in Dakshina Kannada so far, while as many as 9,616 are yet to be vaccinated. The official said that 55,298 of the 66,497 students of classes 9 and 10 are eligible for the vaccine.
In Bantwal taluk,10,203 children have been inoculated while in Belthangady, 4,884 children have taken the jab. The numbers for Mangaluru North, Mangaluru South, Moodbidri, Puttur and Sullia were at 10,527, 10,021, 3,197, 4,725 and 2,125, respectively.
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