Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Due to an alarming rise in infection among the children, the Assam government has advised Covid-19 positive parents to opt for institutional quarantine instead of home quarantine to keep children protected against Coronavirus.
According to the official reports, this year the total number of virus-infected persons in Assam was 2,80,504 from April to June which included 34,606 children up to the age of 18 years.
After further analysis, it showed that 5,755 of these children were less than five and 28,851 between 6-18 years. Even during this period, the state recorded 34 deaths among children. Many of them had comorbidities like congenital diseases- heart, kidney, rare malformations etc especially those less than five years.
The reports further added that during the ongoing Assam Community Surveillance Program Phase 3, many children staying with Covid positive parents or guardians, who had opted for home isolation, subsequently tested positive. The health department is strictly following guidelines issued by the Centre on pediatric Covid management and has taken steps to address and manage the infection among the vulnerable age groups.
