By IANS,
Bangalore : The Frank Anthony Public School here announced that it will remain closed for a week from Monday as a 14-year-old boy has tested positive for Influenza A (H1N1). This is the first school in this southern tech hub to declare a holiday because of swine flu.
Students reached the school Monday morning but the authorities sent them back home to avoid the spread of the virus.
An official of the school confirmed that one of the students has been receiving swine flu treatment at a private hospital.
“The school has been closed as a precautionary step to stop the spread of the virus,” said the official.
Principal Secretary (Health) I. R. Perumal told IANS that the boy was admitted to Manipal Hospital in Jayanagar in south Bangalore and was being administered Tamiflu.
“He is reponding well,” Perumal added.
Perumal said people should not panic as the government was taking all measures to stop the spread of the virus.
“Closing down of the school is a hasty decision on the part of the school authorities,” he said.
Since children between the ages of 10 and 14 years are more vulnerable to the influenza virus, a close watch is being kept over an estimated one crore school children across 46,000 schools in the state, the health secretary said.
“We’ve started the checking children of swine flu virus since Aug 1,” said Perumal.
He added that the central government would supply 100,000 Tamiflu tablets to the state soon.
“Already 10,000 Tamiflu tablets have been distributed in government designated hospitals,” he said.
According to the figures available with the Karnataka health department, the state has recorded 74 confirmed cases of H1N1 virus. Of these, five are from coastal city Mangalore and rest in Bangalore.