The schools will initially open for students of Class 9-12. (Representational)
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai today said that schools in the state can open from August 23, as decided earlier, in districts with COVID-19 positivity rate of less than 2 per cent. Schools will initially open for students of Classes 9-12.
After a meeting with experts today, Mr Bommai said detailed guidelines will be worked out soon. In districts with "more than 2 per cent positivity rate, we are not allowing schools to open. All parents and teachers and staff should be vaccinated. Without vaccination, they cannot enter the school premises," he said.
Karnataka receives around 65 lakh vaccine doses every month on an average. Mr Bommai said he would visit Delhi to ask for one crore doses per month. "We have ordered to increase vaccination in the border districts and 10km from the border," he added.
The chief minister said the positivity rate in capital Bengaluru is currently 0.75 per cent and that he has given full authority to the commissioner of civic body BBMP to take regulatory action if it reaches 2 per cent.
He said the state is especially monitoring the situation in districts bordering Kerala and Maharashtra, given the high number of cases in those states. "We will regulate the border districts where the positivity rate is high... (such as) Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Mysuru, Hassan, Kodagu, Bengaluru Rural, Chikmagaluru and Shivamogga."
He said coronavirus testing will be increased in Hyderabad-Karnataka, Tumakuru, Chikkamagaluru and Bengaluru Rural. The government has also decided to set up six genome testing labs.
According to the chief minister, the experts also expressed concern during the meeting that the positivity rate was not dipping and lingering between 1,600 to 1,800 cases per day. Towards the end of first wave, the cases had come down to 300 cases a day, he explained.
Meanwhile, Bengaluru has seen around 40 to 50 cases a day of children under the age of 18 becoming infected with COVID-19 - usually after exposure to an infected adult.
Karnataka today recorded 1,632 fresh COVID-19 cases and 25 deaths taking the total infections and fatalities to 29,28,033 and 36,958, the health department said. There were 22,695 active cases in the state while the recovery of 1,612 patients took the total recoveries to 28,68,351. The positivity rate for the day was 1.04 per cent and case fatality rate 1.53 per cent, the department said.
Dakshina Kannada district, which borders Kerala, remained the major COVID-19 hotspot. The district reported a maximum of 411 infections and seven fatalities, which was highest among all the districts. Bengaluru recorded 377 fresh infections and one death.