Arunachal: Schools in several districts closed temporarily due to conjunctivitis outbreak

As conjunctivitis cases are surging in Arunachal Pradesh, with children being the most affected, several district administrations have ordered a temporary suspension of school activities to curb the spread of the disease, officials said on Thursday. After the state capital Itanagar and Kanubari sub-division of Longding district, Namsai and East Siang administrations have ordered the closure of schools for a few days to arrest the outbreak of the eye infection, they said.

All private and government schools in East Siang will remain temporarily closed till August 2, while activities in such educational institutes in Namsai have been suspended till July 31, an official said.

The decision was taken after a comprehensive survey, conducted by the district surveillance units, revealed that conjunctivitis cases are on the rise, he said.

The authorities have decided to close schools temporarily as a necessary precautionary measure to contain the spread of the infection among students.

East Siang Deputy Commissioner Tayi Taggu has stressed on the importance of maintaining hygiene practices to curb the infection.

He urged people to diligently follow the guidelines and advisories issued by the district medical officer to safeguard their health and well-being.

Conjunctivitis, commonly known as pink eye, can spread effortlessly through direct or indirect contact with eye secretions, contaminated objects, or respiratory droplets from infected individuals.

The Namsai administration also decided to temporarily close schools as a preventive measure to break the chain of transmission among children, a district official said.

The district administration has directed school-going children and other infected people to self-isolate and quarantine themselves to avoid any further transmission.

More than 100 conjunctivitis cases have been reported from various schools in Lower Dibang Valley, and the number is on the rise, a district official said.

All schools of the district have also been directed to follow the public health advisory issued by the Roing hospital to prevent the spread of the viral infection, he said..

It advised people to follow frequent hand washing, avoiding touching the eyes, sharing personal items and isolating the infected.

The Tirap administration, in association with the district health society, conducted a survey and an awareness programme on acute conjunctivitis at Ramakrishna Sarada Mission Girls’ School, Khonsa on Wednesday.

Tirap Deputy Commissioner Hento Karga advised the students and teaching staff to maintain hygiene to curb the spread of the infection.

He said closing down schools will not be a solution because it will affect academic programmes.

"Rather, we all should try individually to break the chain of the infection by maintaining social distance and hygiene," he added.