As Tamil Nadu tightens its vigil over novel coronavirus, many colleges across the state have declared holidays till March 31.
SRM Institute of Science and Technology, the Central University of Tamil Nadu and National Institute of Technology, Trichy have closed their campuses and instructed students and faculty members to return to their hometowns. They have also restricted travel to foreign countries for the faculty members and students during the shutdown and have also asked them to not entertain guests who have recently returned from abroad.
Vels Institute of Science, Technology and Advanced Studies and Vellore Institute of Technology have also declared holidays till March 31 in the wake of the COVID-19 scare.
The move to shut down colleges comes shortly after the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister announced holiday for all students till class 5 across the state till March 31. However, the CM made no mention of classes 6 onwards and did not ask colleges and universities to shut down. Many other states like Kerala, Telangana and Karnataka have asked all educational institutions to shut down.
Though a few have closed in Tamil Nadu, many higher educational institutions are yet to suspend classes since the state government has not issued any specific orders, as per reports. It is to be noted that there has been fear in a few campuses after speculation that there were suspected cases of COVID-19. However, only one person has tested positive in Tamil Nadu till now.
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) has, however, decided to continue daily classes and exams since all other educational institutions in the state are functioning normally. The college has ordered all foreign travel to be postponed and all gatherings to be avoided.
Meanwhile, the government of Tamil Nadu has notified the regulations for COVID-19. The regulations outline the responsibilities of the hospitals, individuals and government officials engaged in diagnosing, treating and containing COVID-19.
The regulations empower hospital authorities to forcefully admit anybody suspected to have coronavirus infection, and the District Collectors to order restrictive measures like sealing off an area and banning vehicular entry to a particular locality, among other measures. It also bars private laboratories in the state from collecting and testing samples for COVID-19.
As of Saturday evening, only 79 samples have been tested from passengers in Tamil Nadu. While 78 samples tested negative, one sample tested positive for COVID-19. IS TN testing enough? Read here.