COVID-19 wreaks havoc in schools, colleges; 53 school girls, 22 MBBS students test positive

The fear of the COVID-19 third wave has intensified across the state of Odisha, as a large number of people have been reported COVID-19 positive in the past few days. The surge of COVID-19 has been reported amid students, soon after the reopening of schools and colleges in the state.

Over the last three days, a total of 53 students from a government-aided school in Sundergarh district have been tested positive for COVID-19. Apart from these school students, 22 MBBS students from the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) Burla in Sambalpur district have also contracted the virus.

On Tuesday, a total of 212 cases of COVID-19 were reported in Odisha, out of which 70 were children. A state health official confirmed this data and also added that two deaths were recorded on Tuesday, bringing the total death toll in the state up to 8,396.

The girl students who were tested positive in the St. Mary’s Girls’ School are all in a stable condition and the school has been shut down for a week amid the outbreak. It has also been reported that all the students who contracted COVID-19 were students of Classes 8, 9, and 10.

The COVID-19 outbreak amid the MBBS students was most likely due to the annual function which was conducted recently, as per the officials. Out of the total cases, 90 COVID-19 patients are from the Khurda district, 39 are from Sundergarh, and 13 are from Mayurbhanj.

The infection rate of COVID-19 in Odisha has now gone up to 4.48 percent. There are a total of 2,191 COVID-19 patients in the state that are being treated, while over 1.45 crore people in Odisha have been administered both doses of the vaccine.

The surge in COVID-19 cases in educational institutes across Odisha has been reported soon after the government took the decision to reopen schools and colleges for physical classes across the state. Many people fear that this might trigger the third wave of the pandemic, but officials are urging that by taking proper precautions, the rate of spread can be controlled.