IIT Guwahati Now A Containment Zone After 60 Test Positive On Campus

The Indian Institute of Technology's Guwahati campus has been declared a containment zone by authorities after a massive number of infections were reported from the premises. At least 60 people have tested positive for coronavirus from the campus, authorities said.

According to a government order, no one will be allowed to enter or exit the premises.

The new guest house of IIT Guwahati is the epicentre of the campus outbreak, the Kamrup district authorities told NDTV.

The samples of all those who have tested positive have been sent for genome sequencing, sources in the government have told NDTV. The patients have mild to no symptoms, they said.

The infected students had recently returned from their home states and have all been housed in one building on the premises, officials said. Students and the staff members who are not infected have been asked to not leave their rooms, sources said, adding, all classes will be conducted virtually for now.

The institute has asked all its other students planning to return to the campus to cancel their travel, sources in the IIT told NDTV. The sudden surge in cases has triggered a massive contact tracing exercise on the campus. Testing has also been ramped up, they added.

On Tuesday, Assam reported 475 cases of coronavirus in 24 hours - a massive 35 per cent jump over Monday. The case positivity rate in the state now stands at 1.29 per cent.