CHENNAI: A private engineering and medical college near Tambaram has announced a 10-day break, following panic among parents and students due to the death of a 19-year-old student from Kerala, and seven more students showed symptoms.
Saranya (19) of Palakkad was among the many students who study and stay at the hostel of the college, which is located in Selaiyur, Bharath Nagar. Saranya suffered from fever and was taking medication for a few days, but a blood test at the institute’s medical college hospital on the same campus confirmed she had dengue.
Saranya’s condition deteriorated despite treatment, and she succumbed to dengue on Monday. This triggered panic among hostel students. Blood tests of seven students confirm dengue infection. Of them, four are continuing treatment at the college campus, and three have returned home to recover. The college subsequently announced a 10day holiday and evacuated the students to prevent further infection.
Meanwhile, residents living in and around the college have accused the Tambaram Corporation’s health department of negligence. They said civic authorities failed to take timely preventive measures and were responding casually to the situation.
Activists have said that regardless of whether it is dengue or other viral infection, the death of a college student and hospitalisation of seven need serious intervention. They urged both the Corporation health department and the District health authorities should act swiftly and take preventive measures in and around the college campus to prevent further loss of life.