Bengaluru, July 5: Karnataka Education Minister Suresh Kumar has dismissed reports that 32 students who appeared for SSLC class 10 examination contracted coronavirus (COVID-19) from the test centres. Speaking to a news channel, Suresh Kumar said no student got infected with COVID-19 at the SSLC exam centres. The Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) board exam started on June 25 despite concerns among parents amid the COVID-19 pandemic. SSLC Exam 2020: Student Writing Class 10 Paper in Karnataka's Hassan Tests COVID-19 Positive.

"I can vouch for this that not even a single student got infected at the examination centres. The 32 students tested positive at various stages and were carrying it (coronavirus) from other places," Kumar told the channel. The minister added that the 32 students who tested positive were not allowed to appear for the SSLC exam, and the number was cumulatively 32 over the six days of the exam. Karnataka Govt Has 'failed' to Manage COVID-19 Situation: Congress.

Defying the coronavirus pandemic, over 7.5 lakh students appeared for the SSLC exams in Karnataka on the first day on June 25. The exams ended on July 3. In one case, a student in an exam centre at Arakalgud in Hassan district, about 200 km northwest of Bengaluru, tested positive for the virus. The report came while he was writing the maths exam at the Arakalgud centre. An official who was on SSLC examination duty in Pavagada, Tumakuru had also tested positive for COVID-19.

The SSLC board exams were earlier scheduled from March 27 to April 9, but were put off as the lockdown was extended thrice up to May 31. The exams had been held with strict safety measures in place. As a two-metre distance was kept between two students, more exam centres had been arranged to comply with the guidelines. Each exam centre had also been equipped with sanitizer dispensers to wash hands before and after the exams.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 05, 2020 09:38 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).