Fifty-seven girl inmates of a government shelter home in Kanpur have been found positive for COVID-19, the district administration said on Sunday.
Amid reports that some of these girls were also found to be pregnant, the administration clarified that they were recorded as pregnant during their arrival at the Rajkiya Balika Grah in Swarup Nagar.
Five girls among the positive cases were found to be pregnant, said District Magistrate Kanpur Brahma Deo Ram Tiwari. The girls were already pregnant at the time they were brought to the shelter, he added.
“These girls were brought from different districts on the directions of the CWC (Child Eelfare Committees) under POCSO Act,” said Mr. Tiwari.
The girls came from Agra, Kannauj, Firozabad, Etah and Kanpur.
Two other pregnant girls have been found negative, he added.
Poonam Kapoor, state women commission member, said many girls are brought to the shelter home under the POCSO Act. “They are minors, 16-17 years of age. So they are kept there,” she said.
Ms. Kapoor said that the girls probably got infected after some staff members who had gone to Hailet hospital in Kanpur with two girls came in contact with some COVID-19 positive persons.
In relation to the pregnancy cases, Ms. Kapoor dismissed the possibility of any lapses and said she inspects the shelter home every month.
