Says protection of inoculation is needed for kids with comorbidity conditions
Kids of a low-income neighbourhood attend a class at an open-air school set up by an NGO, at Porajhar, West Bengal, on July 23. Pic/AFP
As the COVID-19 cases dropped significantly over the past few weeks after a ravaging second wave in April-May, India’s top virologist Dr Gagandeep Kang on Thursday said schools should be reopened in a phased manner with vaccinated teachers and staff.
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While speaking to ANI, Dr Kang, also the vice-chairman of Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Board, said, “The schools should be reopened in a phased manner and the schools should be frequently sanitised. Social distancing should be maintained in the classrooms and all the staff must be vaccinated.”
She added that protection of inoculation is needed for children with comorbidities. “Healthy children are less likely to contract the disease. The children do not get sick as often as adults, so we need to protect the children with comorbidities.”
The virologist said physical interactions with teachers are very important for children. “Before reopening, all the teachers should be vaccinated and classrooms should have good ventilation. Students should wear masks inside the classroom, and schools can be run on a shift basis. Lot of precautions should be taken before resuming the schools,” she added.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said her government is weighing options for reopening schools and colleges on alternate days in November. “However, nothing has been finalised just yet,” she added.
The Union health ministry on Thursday morning added 42,982 new Coronavirus infections and 533 fatalities in its official tally. The active tally over the past 24 hours rose by 723 cases to 4,11,076.
‘Covaxin gets GMP certificate from Hungary’
Bharat Biotech said its COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin has received Good Manufa-cturing Practices (GMP) compliance certificate from Hungary. It tweeted, “This marks the 1st EUDRAGDMP compliance certificate received by Bharat Biotech from European regulatories.”
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