JOIN USCoronavirus: Uttara Kannada boys stuck in MP hostel
As many as 18 children from Uttara Kannada, the Class IX students at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Junapani in Madhya Pradesh, are stuck in their school hostel following the nationwide lockdown clamped in a bid to contain the spread of novel coronavirus.
Students of Malagi Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in the district had taken admission to Class IX at Junapani JNV in Madhya Pradesh last June. They were planning to return home for a summer vacation on March 30. All their plans went haywire after the Madhya Pradesh government and the regulatory body of Navodaya Vidyalaya declared indefinite holiday to schools on March 20 in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak.
After the school was declared holiday on March 20, they (students) booked their return tickets for March 22. But the Centre stopped rail services. Many of their hostel mates have left to their places. Only 18 students from Karnataka are left in hostel. "They are secure and getting good food. But many stranded students are homesick. Also, parents are worried about their wards’ well-being," a parent of a stranded student told DH.
Meanwhile, Assistant Commissioner Eshwar Ullagaddi told DH, “It is safe for children to in their hostel. For now, all rail, road and air transport services are stalled. Also children may face the danger of contracting the Covid-19 if they come in contact with the affected person during the journey. Let them be in their hostel till the situation improves,” he added.