Parents need not worry, says Education Minister as schools reopen in Karnataka

News Network

January 1, 2021

Bengaluru, Jan 1: Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister Suresh Kumar on Friday asked the parents to not to worry and send their wards to schools and colleges as the administration is ensuring that full preventive measures are in place.

The Minister visited various schools in Bengaluru today to review the school's preparatory measures.

Speaking to media afterwards, Minister Suresh Kumar said the online class is just an alternative. Learning is perfect only when children come to school. No pressure to come to school. Preventive measures have been taken so as not to spread the infection to school students. It's a safety center, not a school.

Parents are no longer worried. Don't worry. The new type of corona is like the old corona. It's spreading fast. Most kids can come to school from New Year's Background Monday. Parents bravely send children to school, said minister Suresh Kumar.

Schools and Pre-University (PU) colleges in Karnataka will reopen from today, January 1, for students of Class 10 and Class 12, after a gap of nearly 10 months. Students of Classes 6 to 9 will also be allowed to visit their schools for the Vidyagama programme.

Meanwhile schools and pre-university colleges across the state reopened on Friday after a span of nine-and-a-half months, several teachers and non-teaching staff may not be able to attend classes as they are not willing to get tested for COVID-19.

According to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), all teachers and non-teaching staff have to mandatorily get tested for COVID-19 and can attend classes only after they get a negative report for the RT-PCR test.

On Friday, classes 10 and 12 will be held. The Vidyagama programme, which was stalled in October, will also be restarted for students of classes 6 to 9.

Based on the response to these classes, the State government will take a call on whether other classes can be reopened on January 15.

The state government appealed to parents to send their wards to school without any fear. “Along with academics of children, their health is also very important. So parents also should keep an eye on the health of their wards and avoid sending them if there are any symptoms,” he said, urging parents to watch out for symptoms such as cold, cough or fever in their children.

The education Minister also directed the school managements to assign one teacher to observe the health of the children. He said that if children have any of these symptoms, they should be subjected to detailed health examination.

The decision to reopen schools was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, after discussing in detail the advice given by the state’s Technical Advisory Committee for COVID-19 on reopening of schools.

The Chief Minister had previously said on social media that a decision on reopening schools for students of other classes would be taken after reviewing the situation for 15 days. Both classes 10 and second PUC are crucial as students will have to face board exams.

Students from tenth standard and second year pre-university course began arriving in school and college premises in the district on Friday after the state reopened institutions for classes. Both, government and private schools and pre-university colleges students were screened for body temperature and provided sanitisers before entering. Several anxious parents accompanied their children to schools.

However, not all students attended classes. Teaching and non-teaching staff were seen interacting with the students at the entrance, guiding them to stand in socially distant boxes and proceed to get body temperature checked before entering classrooms.

Colleges and schools sanitised classrooms a day before they were scheduled to reopen.

Schools and PU colleges in Karnataka have remained closed since March just ahead of the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Degree and engineering colleges in the state were reopened on November 17. Karnataka is planning to hold regular classes for PU first year from January 15.

Schools and colleges reopened in Kalyana Karnataka, Belagavi district, old Mysuru region, and Malnadu regions.

In some schools teachers welcomed the students with offering flowers and in some places decorated the entrance of the schools on festival mood .

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No cases yet, but vigilance high: Karnataka braces for Nipah threat

News Network

February 3,2026

Bengaluru: Following reports of fresh Nipah virus (NiV) cases in West Bengal and heightened vigilance across parts of Southeast Asia, the Karnataka Health Department has placed the state on high alert and activated emergency preparedness protocols.

Health officials said enhanced surveillance measures have been initiated after two healthcare workers in Barasat, West Bengal, tested positive for the virus earlier this month. While no cases have been reported in Karnataka so far, authorities said the state’s past exposure to Nipah outbreaks and high inter-state mobility warranted preventive action.

Officials have directed district health teams to intensify monitoring, particularly at hospitals and points of entry, and to ensure early detection and isolation of suspected cases.

High Mortality Virus with Multiple Transmission Routes

Nipah virus is a zoonotic disease that can spread from animals to humans and has a reported fatality rate ranging between 60 and 75 per cent. Fruit bats, also known as flying foxes, are the natural reservoirs of the virus and can transmit it by contaminating food sources with saliva or urine.

Known modes of transmission include:

•   Contaminated food: Consumption of fruits partially eaten by bats or raw date-palm sap
•   Animal contact: Exposure to infected pigs or other animals
•   Human-to-human transmission: Close contact with body fluids of infected persons, particularly in healthcare settings

Symptoms and Disease Progression

The incubation period typically ranges from 4 to 14 days, though delayed onset has also been reported. Early symptoms often resemble common viral infections, making prompt clinical suspicion critical.

•   Initial symptoms: Fever, headache, body aches, fatigue, sore throat
•   Progressive symptoms: Drowsiness, disorientation, altered mental state
•   Severe stage: Seizures, neck stiffness and acute encephalitis, which can rapidly progress to coma

Public Health Advisory

The Health Department has issued precautionary guidelines urging the public to adopt risk-avoidance practices to prevent any local spillover.

Do’s
•   Wash fruits thoroughly before consumption
•   Drink boiled and cooled water
•   Use protective equipment while handling livestock
•   Maintain strict hand hygiene

Don’ts
•   Avoid fruits found on the ground or showing bite marks
•   Do not consume beverages made from raw tree sap, including toddy
•   Avoid areas with dense bat populations
•   Do not handle sick or dead animals

Preparedness Measures

Officials confirmed that isolation wards are being readied in major government hospitals and that medical staff are being sensitised to identify early warning signs.

“There is no cause for panic, but there is a need for heightened vigilance,” a senior health official said, adding that there is currently no approved vaccine or specific antiviral treatment for Nipah, and care remains largely supportive.

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