KUALA LUMPUR, March 25 — A total of 41 Covid-19 clusters were detected in educational institutions nationwide since the incremental resumption of physical classes in January, Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah revealed today.

The Health Ministry (MOH) director-general said 15 of these clusters were detected in institutions of higher education, 11 of them in secondary schools, 10 from primary and preschools, and five more clusters involving tahfiz and madrasah religious schools over the last three months.

"These include three new clusters reported today, namely the Paloh Rambai, Merinding and Persiaran Maktab clusters,” he said in a statement today.

Despite the emergence of these clusters, Dr Noor Hisham said the reopening of schools was important to make sure Malaysia’s students do not fall behind, so long as Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP) are strictly adhered to.

"As such, the MOH would like to remind everyone, especially those in the school management, teachers, parents or guardians, canteen operators, school bus drivers, and including all students, to ensure they always comply with the SOPs and follow the new school management and operational guidelines for the new norm.

"MOH will constantly cooperate with the Education Ministry to ensure the health aspect and the safety of those within these educational institutions are always prioritised.

"The cooperation from all is also needed to ensure these educational institutions remain a conducive and safe environment for learning,” he added.

Elaborating on the three clusters detected at education institutions today, Dr Noor Hisham explained the Paloh Rambai cluster involves students and staff of several education centres in Kota Baru, Kelantan, with 20 positive cases detected from the 347 people screened so far.

The Merinding cluster, said Dr Noor Hisham, involves an education centre on Jalan Kampung Merinding in Labuan, where five positive cases were detected from the 1,010 people who were screened.

He said the third cluster, the Persiaran Maktab cluster, involved an education centre in Taman Cuepacs, Hulu Langat, with seven positive cases detected from the 45 people screened so far.