Engineering colleges pay scant attention to COVID-19 protocols
A prominent college in Karnataka celebrated Kannada Rajyotsava with ethnic day in its auditorium.
Some colleges held cultural and social events, despite the advisory issued by the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Karnataka. Around 4,500 students, 400 faculty members, and nearly 300 plus supporting staff attended the Rajyotsava.
In the light of recent clusters of COVID-19 being detected at educational institutions in Mysuru, Dharwad and Bengaluru, the Karnataka government on Sunday decided to implement a slew of stringent precautionary measures for educational institutions.
Actor Ramchandra Raju expressed his concerns about the pandemic. “People should wear mask, maintain social distancing and follow all the rules. There is a situation wherein [third wave of] pandemic might happen again due to new virus coming up. So we should be aware of it as prevention is better than cure.”
The principal of the institute said, “We have taken all precautions amidst the pandemic, and followed all the regulations.” We have informed the faculty to maintain strict discipline on the campus during the event.”
He added that they had thought of postponing the Rajyotsava, but decided to celebrate it on a smaller scale. It will be celebrated again on a larger scale after two months.
A member of the student committee said that they organized it in a highly cultured and systematic manner. We are using COVID-19 guidelines to assess the current condition. We are enforcing every guideline, such as maintaining social distancing and discipline during the event. We have been working hard to preserve discipline by adhering to official guidelines, he added.
However, people were not following any COVID-19 protocols during the event. There was no thermal checking at the entrance, and no checking of vaccination certificates of the attendees. Social distancing and masks were neglected by various attendees.
Sanket Bhatt, student of the institute said, “Rules are generally followed, but today nobody is following them. Everybody is wearing a mask for the sake of the camera today.”
