The Central government is planning to reopen schools in a phased manner and as per zones. According to the plan, older students in green and orange zones would be eligible to attend schools first, while students from Class 1 to 7 would need to wait till schools are fully functional.
In order to keep the younger students safe, they would continue their studies from home. Official guidelines regarding the same are likely to be released later this week after a final decision is taken by all the related ministries, according to a report in The Print.
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The government is planning to reopen schools sometime in July with 30 per cent attendance. Students would require to follow social distancing norms and hence are likely to be divided into two shifts.
Teachers would also be trained on how to follow the guidelines as well as help others follow them. School assemblies would not be allowed, as mentioned by the news site.
HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal in a webinar with teachers had said that UGC and NCERT were deciding on the safety guidelines to reopen colleges and universities and schools respectively. The guidelines are likely to vary in each case.
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Teachers would be required to wear masks and gloves and thermal scanners would be installed in every school. CCTV cameras would ensure that social distancing rules are being followed. The guidelines would also be put up in multiple locations in every school, stated the news site. SDM and DM of every area could tweak the guidelines as required.
Additionally, board exams that were halted in between due to nationwide lockdown would resume from July. CBSE and ICSE boards have already released the date sheet for Class 10 and 12's pending board exams. CBSE has increased the number of centres to ensure social distancing. It has also made sure that no exam centres are in red zones or containment zones.
Pokhriyal during a webinar on May 14 had hinted about the measures that would be undertaken to reopen schools. "If social distancing needs to be maintained in a classroom, and if only 30% students are able to come, we need to see what steps need to be taken to bring in a proper system when schools reopen. The lives of teachers and students are more important right now," he had said.
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