Schools,colleges to be shut? No, says CM

By Shyam Sundar Vattam | NT

Bengaluru: There is no proposal before the government to close down schools and colleges following the discovery of a new Covid variant, Omicron in South Africa and other countries recently, said CM Basavaraj Bommai.

“I have asked the officials concerned to keep a watch on schools and colleges but have not instructed them to shut them down”, Bommai told the media in Davangere on Monday.

The CM said the government has made the RTPCR report mandatory for students travelling from Kerala to all districts in Karnataka and a second test mandatory on the seventh day after their arrival. District officials have been strictly told to check for big congregations. The government is in constant touch with experts and the union government is following all directions given from time to time, he said.

“I appeal to people not to panic about the new variant but strictly follow safety protocols announced by the government. A strict vigil is being maintained on people who have returned from other nations (where the new variant has been discovered) and we are trying to locate them for conducting the necessary tests. Those who arrive at KIAL are tested and allowed to enter the city only if they produce the Covid negative report. The symptoms of a person who arrived from South Africa are different from those associated with the Delta variant and the samples have been sent to the ICMR The variant would be known only after the lab report is received, he added.