<p>Two students in Thiruvananthapuram who appeared for the Kerala Engineering Architecture Medical entrance examination last week were tested positive for Covid-19 and many students and their parents have gone into quarantine.</p>.<p>It is causing an embarrassment to the left front government in Kerala as there were objections from various quarters over conducting the examination amidst Covid-19 spike in Kerala. However, the government went ahead with the decision as it had successfully conducted the SSLC and higher secondary examinations amidst Covid-19 spike and no students reportedly got infected.</p>.<p>Both the students who were tested positive appeared for the examination at two separate centres in Thiruvananthapurm city on July 16. One student's father was also tested positive. The district administration had started contact tracing of the student who appeared for the examination in these centres, it was learnt.</p>.<p>Around one lakh students had registered for the examination, of which 85 percent had appeared. Elaborate arrangements like separate rooms for those having symptoms and coming from hotspots were made. Even three students under treatment and observation were allowed to appear for the examination at two hospitals in Alappuzha and Pathanamthita districts.</p>.<p>Soon after the examinations, pictures of students and parents crowding at the entrance of many centres went viral of the social media. Many flayed the government decision to conduct KEAM amidst alarming increase of Covid-19, especially in Thiruvananthapuram, which was then on the verge of community spread at two localities.</p>.<p>However, the major opposition parties Congress and BJP were not very aggressive in demanding postponing of the KEAM entrance examination as the Pinarayi Vijayan government managed to score politically by conducting the pending tenth and higher-secondary examinations in May, amidst objections by the opposition parties.</p>
<p>Two students in Thiruvananthapuram who appeared for the Kerala Engineering Architecture Medical entrance examination last week were tested positive for Covid-19 and many students and their parents have gone into quarantine.</p>.<p>It is causing an embarrassment to the left front government in Kerala as there were objections from various quarters over conducting the examination amidst Covid-19 spike in Kerala. However, the government went ahead with the decision as it had successfully conducted the SSLC and higher secondary examinations amidst Covid-19 spike and no students reportedly got infected.</p>.<p>Both the students who were tested positive appeared for the examination at two separate centres in Thiruvananthapurm city on July 16. One student's father was also tested positive. The district administration had started contact tracing of the student who appeared for the examination in these centres, it was learnt.</p>.<p>Around one lakh students had registered for the examination, of which 85 percent had appeared. Elaborate arrangements like separate rooms for those having symptoms and coming from hotspots were made. Even three students under treatment and observation were allowed to appear for the examination at two hospitals in Alappuzha and Pathanamthita districts.</p>.<p>Soon after the examinations, pictures of students and parents crowding at the entrance of many centres went viral of the social media. Many flayed the government decision to conduct KEAM amidst alarming increase of Covid-19, especially in Thiruvananthapuram, which was then on the verge of community spread at two localities.</p>.<p>However, the major opposition parties Congress and BJP were not very aggressive in demanding postponing of the KEAM entrance examination as the Pinarayi Vijayan government managed to score politically by conducting the pending tenth and higher-secondary examinations in May, amidst objections by the opposition parties.</p>
