Amid increasing COVID-19 cases in Kerala, over 300 government and aided schools across the state have got 'sanitiserbooths' to ensure the hygiene and safety of students. The booths, installed at the entrance of each school, are equipped with sensor-integrated automatic machines that will dispense sanitiser to the students and others, official sources here said.

It is an initiative of the vocational higher secondary education (VHSE) unit of the National Service Scheme (NSS), under the state General Education Department (GED), they added. As the final years exams were about to begin in state schools, the 'sanitiser booths' were part of extra precautionary measures against the spread of the coronavirus infection among children, a senior NSS official said. "The machines are installed at 332 government/aided schools across the state, having vocational higher secondary or NSS units.

The state Health Department has given us all support for the project," NSS (GED-VHSE) Programme Coordinator Ranjith P said. As it was automatic machines, children need not touch it to get the medicinal liquid to sanitise their hands, he said. In many schools, the NSS programme officers bought the machines and installed it with the support of volunteers.

Each such machine, which will function using both electricity and battery, costs at least Rs 1,500, he said. However, students themselves have made the machines in those vocational higher secondary schools where Electronics is a subject. "At least 42 per cent of automatic machines are built by our children," the official added.

Schools, which remained closed since the coronavirus outbreak last year, have been functioning since January 1 for 10th and 12th standards with limited hours and restricted number of students.