Bhubaneswar: In a bizarre turn of event, the 25 students of Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology (VSSUT), Burla who had reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 three days ago have were declared negative Tuesday after another round of tests.
Health Secretary Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra termed ‘false’ the earlier tests carried out on the students.
“None of the students of the university has been infected by the COVID-19 virus. The antigen kits used in testing were faulty. When the students’ RT-PCR tests were done the reports came out to be negative.”
Sources said the test kits will be withdrawn and the Health Department will take necessary steps to prevent recurrence of such events.
Sources said that the precautionary measures adopted after the first round of tests will now be withdrawn. The district administration had declared 11 hostels on the varsity premises as ‘Containment Zones’. These hostels are Pulaha, Pulastya, Atri, Kratu, Vasistha, Marich, Anuradha, Arundhati, Rohini, Visakha and Vasundhara. The adjacent area of Pulaha hostel was also declared as a buffer zone.
This apart, the varsity authorities had also postponed the exams scheduled to begin from March 1 till further orders.
This revelation has shocked the local people. “What about the mental stress the 25 students and their parents underwent during these days,” they asked.
PNN