JODHPUR: A total of 52 IIT-Jodhpur students have tested positive for coronavirus infection over the last week following their return to the institute to attend practical classes, an official said on Saturday.
The students, most of them from Gujarat and Odisha, had returned to the institute to attend their mandatory laboratory sessions after undergoing online classes in their home towns, he added.
All these Covid-positive students have been quarantined and made to stay in one of the hostels on the IIT campus, an IIT spokesperson said, adding all anti-Covid precautions are being taken.
Two hostel buildings have been reserved for keeping the students and staff, both academic and non-academic, after the contact-tracing of the positive students, spokesperson Amardeep Sharma said.
He said with the coronavirus infection again on the rise, the IIT administration started taking utmost precaution to keep the campus free from the infection amid the students returning to the campus.
“We ensured that every student coming from home went to a designated isolation ward directly from the main gate, where the swab samples of students with symptoms were taken and sent to AIIMS for the tests,” said Mr Sharma.
“If the samples tested positive, we sent the student directly to the super-isolation ward from the isolation ward for the next 14 days,” he added.
Considering the seriousness of the situation, Jodhpur Divisional Commissioner Rajesh Sharma and Deputy Director (Medical & Health) Sunil Kumar Bisht visited the campus on Saturday afternoon and reviewed the situation and arrangements undertaken by the IIT administration.
“We have asked for a mandatory 10-day quarantine for every student coming from home and have also given directions for random sampling of the staff,” said Mr Sharma.
He said as the students from hostels have been reported positive, directions of contact tracing have also been issued to the IIT administration.
IIT, Jodhpur has 11 hostel buildings on its campus and with students coming in hoards for practical sessions, the administration has been taking every possible measure to keep the situation under control, he added. (Agency)
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