Swine Flu Scare

With the rapid increase in the number of people acquiring swine flu and not surviving, everyone is scared of catching the H1N1 virus. While Pune and Mumbai are probably the worst-affected cities, panic is on the rise even in Bangalore.
Many schools have been shut down...Face masks are out of stock in pharmacy stores as people are indulging in panic buying of masks - most of them unaware of the fact that the masks are useless in protecting wearers from catching swine flu.

In my college, there have been 4 confirmed cases of students having swine flu. However, instead of shutting down the college for at least 3 days, our college continues to function as always! Students have merely been requested not to attend classes if they are unwell.
My mother is scared and wants me to return home from Bangalore and is exasperated as I am not obeying her.
While I would love to return home, the reason for me remaining behind in Bangalore is that in my college, one needs to have a minimum attendance of 85% in order to be allowed to write the final exams. Under no circumstance I wish to mess up my attendance...even if I get swine flu, I would rather attend classes than bunk - because if I survive, I would need the attendance for being permitted to write my exam. It is my final year in college and I would never want to mess up anything!
This may sound crazy but it is true...I just hope I remain hale and hearty and I pray to God to give strength to all those people who have been affected by swine flu!