Karnataka: Dharwad put on alert as 281 students test Covid positive in SDM college

With 77 new individuals testing positive, a medical institution in Dharwad, Karnataka, has become a Covid hotspot, bringing the total number of cases to 281.
The SDM College of Medical Sciences, a tertiary care centre, is regarded as north Karnataka’s medical hub.

Admissions to the hospital have been halted for new patients. The hospital’s entrance and exit have been sealed, and only those in who test negative will be released.

The majority of those afflicted at the institution were properly vaccinated against coronavirus, according to officials, who added that the outbreak was caused by a recent freshmen’s party held on campus. The celebration lasted two to three days.

Chairman of Manipal Hospital and member of Covid task force team in Karnataka Dr Sudarshan Ballal said the Covid cluster is a cause of concern.

“There was a large cluster that has turned to be positive and all of them were at an event. This means the variant of this virus is infectious. Second concern, all the students were fully vaccinated which means there is a immune escape phenomena,” he said.

However, he said, the disease is not severe.

Genomic sequencing will help decide on the new kind of variant, Dr Ballal said.

“113 positive samples have been sent to Strand Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore. Genome Sequencing is expected to be completed by December 1,” state health commissioner D Randeep said.