Board games for bored young patients

Mysuru: With more children catching Covid infection due to contacts and travel history of family members, the authorities are introducing board games to keep them active during their hospitalisation at Covid hospital or Covid Care Centre (CCC).
Accordingly, the young patients would get to play carrom, chess, ludo, business, scrabble and other board/ indoor games.
Nearly 11,000 children have landed at Covid hospitals across Karnataka. This amounts to 11% of 96,141, the total number of positive cases in Karnataka. Of them (as on July 25), 4,033 are aged 10 and below, while 6,914 are in 10-20 age group. They are infected through contacts, travel history and Influenza-Like Illness.
As many children are getting admitted to Covid hospital and CCC, the authorities are planning to keep them active as it is important for their recovery. To start with, they have provided carrom boards to CCC in Karnataka State Open University building here.
DC Abhiram G Sankar told TOI that chess, carrom, and other board games would be introduced at all facilities shortly.
While elderly patients kill boredom by watching TV shows, young adults keep themselves engaged on social media, either messaging or by dancing to film songs and sharing the same on Facebook or WhatsApp. Now, children too have a good way to pass time.
District child protection officer S Diwakar said children are vulnerable to Covid infection, and they need utmost care while at care centres. “We have been offering them tele-counselling so they are destressed. Conducting activities for children inside Covid hospital is difficult, so they would be allowed to play board games during treatment,” the officer explained.
Mysuru has the highest number of child cases compared to other south Indian districts of Mandya, Chamarajanagar, Hassan and Kodagu. It has also reported the death of a special child (14-year-old) recently.