Class 10 and 12 students had begun physically attending schools in Kerala since last month.
Days after they began attending classes physically under the Covid-19 cloud, 192 Class 10 students of two schools in Kerala's Malappuram district have tested positive for Covid-19 following a contact-tracing exercise. Up to 72 staffers, too, have been diagnosed with the disease, officials have said.
The among the students tested positive on February 1.
"After one student tested positive, others were tested as part of contact tracing and surveillance. Subsequently, students and staff of another school in this same area were also tested. This needs to be seen as a timely intervention to contain the spread," District Medical Officer Dr K Sakeena told NDTV.
This comes amid the high number of fresh coronavirus cases being reported in Kerala, a state that was initially held up as a role model for its handling of the pandemic. Kerala reported India's first Covid-19 case in January 2020.
Today, it has an overall registry of 9,68,438 cases - 6,075 more than a day earlier - with 3,867 deaths recorded till now, 19 more than on Sunday.
The test positivity rate in Kerala had dipped to 7.18 on February 6 as testing was ramped up, as compared to being over 10 in the beginning of the month.
Of the 638 students tested in all recently at the two Malappuram schools, 149 belonged to one and 43 to another. Similarly, of the staffers tested, including teachers, 39 of those who tested positive belonged to one school and 33 to another.
The District Collector has now called for a meeting today with all officials to decide on further action.
Class 10 and 12 students had begun physically attending schools in Kerala since last month, especially for practical sessions and to clear the remaining doubts in lessons. They have been divided into multiple shifts with restricted numbers as part of the Covid-19 protocol for schools.