NIT Silchar issues SOP amid fear of Tuberculosis outbreak

Silchar: The Dean for Students’ Welfare in the NIT Silchar had issued an SOP making wearing masks inside the premises and extending the dining time by 3 hours to avoid rush after at least 5 students were diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB).  Fearing further outbreak the district administration had already conducted a mass testing drive at the NIT. Later District Tuberculosis Officer Dr Ramana Chakrabarty said, after being informed that by the NIT authority that five students were infected with TB, she along with her team made a testing drive and found no outbreak of TB. One student from Bangladesh was diagnosed with TB last month and after initial treatment he had moved to his country. However traces of Latent TB Infection was found among five students on Tuesday. Dr Chakrabarty said, Latent TB infection and Tuberculosis were different and the former had no infectious feature.

Sources said, till now 11 students were diagnosed with TB while few more cases were feared to be reported. Boarders of hostels 9A, 9B and 9C were mainly affected. These three hostels accommodate at least 1000 students. A good number of boarders already had vacated the hostels and moved to their homes.

In this backdrop, the Dean, SW had issued SOP which made wearing masks inside and outside the hostel mandatory. Even the housekeeping and kitchen staff were asked to wear masks. To avoid rush in the hall, the dining hour had been extended till 10 pm. Consumption of food from outside eateries was strictly prohibited. Screening test for TB for each student was made compulsory. Further two teams, one comprising Deans and Associate Deans and another with Associate Wardens were formed to monitor the overall hygiene of the hostels.

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