Online classes are on again for students of Mahindra University in Hyderabad from today, that is November 29, as it went under lockdown on November 27 after 30 COVID positive cases were detected. Physical classes have been suspended until further notice. Once a few students reported that had have developed mild symptoms last week, the varsity conducted 1,700 RT PCR tests — 1,400 for students and the rest for staff. "Even before all the results of the tests started coming in, we started encouraging students, even the ones staying in campus hostels, to leave for their home as a precautionary measure on November 24," informs Rakesh Sreedharan, Head, Marketing and Admissions. By November 25, all students had left the campus.   

Those students who tested positive were provided isolation rooms until their parents decided to pick them up and take them home. Out of the 30, 25 are students, one is a faculty member and four are members from the non-teaching staff. "Barring five who are mildly symptomatic, all of them are asymptomatic," says Sreedharan and informed that it will only be later this week that a decision will be taken with regards to when the campus will reopen again. For now, sanitisation of the campus is on. 

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Even before the second phase of the lockdown, the university officials would conduct random RT PCR tests apart from ensuring that all the guidelines laid out by the ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) are followed thoroughly.