Covid tests mandatory as Bengaluru colleges set to reopen
Bengaluru has allowed the reopening of colleges and only those students and teachers who test COVID-19 negative would be allowed for classes, as per when the colleges reopen. In a Monday statement, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahangara Palika Commissioner N. Manjunatha Prasad said, "As per the guidelines and standard operating procedure of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the state government, students, teachers and staff will be allowed to enter the college only if their Covid test is negative."
"All students and teachers have to produce a certificate with a negative result from an RT-PCR test, showing they are free from the infection," said Prasad.
Wearing of face masks, washing hands with sanitiser, and maintaining physical distance in classes and campuses are also mandatory for students, teachers and staff.
Students staying in hostels in college campuses or outside in the city also have to undergo RT-PCR test for the virus before going for classes.
"The test result will be valid for 72 hours (3 days) in the absence of any Covid symptom. Students and faculty can take the test at any of the 141 urban primary health centres in 198 civic wards across the city," said Prasad.
Also Read | Now, parents' consent mandatory to attend offline classes in Karnataka colleges
The civic body has also deployed 450 mobile swab collection teams near colleges to conduct the Covid test.
Prasad said that they expect about 30 per cent of students to attend their colleges initially as many of them are wary of getting infected.
The students have also been given the option of attending classes online in case their parents are not ready to let them attend college.
Schools and colleges in Karnataka have been shut over more than 7 months now, since the government had announced a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.
The state capital has 432 state-run and private colleges, with about 60,000 students, teachers and non-teaching staff.
Engineering and medical colleges in the state will reopen from December 1, while the state government has deferred reopening of schools till further notice.
