The institute had opened its doors for seniors on December 7 according to an order from the state government.
Seventy-one residents of the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) tested positive for coronavirus. This includes 66 students. After this, the institute closed its laboratories, library and departments. The institute opened its doors for seniors on December 7 according to an order from the Tamil Nadu government.
According to a report, the first two cases were diagnosed on December 1, and by December 10, 14 more people tested positive for the virus. The institute added 55 more cases in the past three days and has been declared a COVID hotspot.
A total of 774 students are reportedly currently on campus and most of the cases have been diagnosed in two shelters: Krishna and Jamuna. In addition to the students, a faculty member living in the institute’s guest house and four campus cafeteria workers also tested positive for the virus. Following this, the IIT-Madras leadership has advised the students not to leave their hostel rooms and remain in quarantine.
Since December 1, 25 patients have been transferred to the Kings Institute for Preventive Medicine in Guindy after contracting COVID-19. Hospital authorities alerted the health department after a large number of patients were admitted from IIT-Madras on Saturday.
While the health department and campus authorities have yet to identify the cause of the infection, students have said that overcrowding in campus clutter could be the reason. Since it is the only operational disorder on campus, students had crowded there during meals and mask discipline was not followed as students had to eat.
On December 9, institute authorities brought in a new group of canteen workers after four of them tested positive for coronavirus. On December 10, however, the institute closed the cafeteria and food was sent to the students’ rooms.
The institute then issued a circular asking all faculty members, research scholars, etc. who will work from home. All those who remained on campus have been recommended to self-quarantine.
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