Coronavirus | Three government school students test positive for COVID-19 in Tiruppur district

A week after the reopening of schools for classes 10 and 12, three class 12 students, studying at a government school near Kangeyam in Tiruppur district, tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, the Health Department said.

According to Deputy Director of Health Services (Tiruppur) K. Jegadeesh Kumar, a medical team from Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK), the school healthcare initiative visited the Government Higher Secondary School, Muthur on Saturday. The team lifted swab samples of all the students at the school and the test results on Monday confirmed that two boys and one girl studying in class 12 were COVID-19 positive.

Following this, the three students were taken to Tiruppur Government Medical College Hospital in an ambulance on Monday evening for treatment. Dr. Kumar said that it was not immediately clear as to how these three students contracted the novel coronavirus. The swab samples of around 10 students who were sitting in close proximity to the COVID-19 positive students were also lifted. “If any more students show [COVID-19] symptoms, they will also be tested,” Dr. Kumar said.

An official from the Department of School Education said that the entire school premises was disinfected on Monday and the three classrooms used by the class 12 and class 10 students will remain closed for one week. Arrangements have been made in three other classrooms to resume regular classes from Wednesday, he said.