IIT-Guwahati declared a containment zone after several test Covid positive
Premium- Almost 99% of the cases are people who returned to the campus from outside Assam after holidays
GUWAHATI : The authorities of Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati on Wednesday declared the campus a containment zone after over fifty people tested positive for the virus.
Authorities imposed restrictions in the campus after over fifty people tested positive in the past six days.
The officials informed that a new guest house is the epicenter of the outbreak in the campus.
Parmeshwar Iyer, Dean-PR, IIT-Guwahati said that almost 99% of the cases that tested positive for the coronavirus are people who returned to the campus after holidays.
"More than 50 cases of Covid-19 have been detected on the campus since December 31. Among them are a faculty member and five members of his family, and another staff member. The rest are students," he said.
Except for the faculty member and his family, all the patients are lodged at the quarantine centre at the institute's guest house on the campus, Iyer said.
"As the faculty member's parents, mother-in-law and young son tested positive, they preferred to be hospitalised. They are currently undergoing treatment at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital," he said.
"We are closely monitoring the situation and taking all necessary measures. The district authorities have provided us with extra resources to augment the testing process," he added.
Students and staff who have tested negative have been have been asked to stay in their rooms. Officials informed that all classes will be conducted virtually for now.
Students and staff who were planning to return to the campus have been asked to cancel their travel plan.
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