Physical classes in both rural and urban areas in Maharashtra will re-open from August 17 as state education minister Varsha Gaikwad said. Schools across the state have been closed since March last year when the coronavirus pandemic hit with classes being held online.
“Offline classes will commence in rural areas for students from classes 5 to 8, while those in cities will be for students from classes 8 to 12 following Covid-19 protocols,” Gaikwad said. She, however, added that on-campus classes will be allowed only in the areas where Covid-19 infections are consistently low, the minister added.
A detailed order on the re-opening of these schools is expected to be issued by the education department soon.
On Friday, the state reported 5,539 new Covid-19 cases and 187 fatalities, taking the infection tally to 63.41 lakh and the toll to 1,33,717, state health department data stated.
Gaikwad’s announcement comes on a day when two other states, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, also laid out plans for resuming on-campus classes. In Karnataka, schools will reopen for students from classes 9-12 from August 23, while in Tamil Nadu offline classes will begin from September 1. Recently, schools in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh re-opened.
Currently, Maharashtra has 19,997 secondary and higher secondary schools with over 45 lakh students in classes 8 to 12. In July, the Maharashtra government had decided to reopen schools in areas where no Covid-19 cases have been reported over a months’ period. Subsequently, from July 12, as many as 5,947 schools in rural areas resumed on-campus classes for students of classes 8 to 12.
Also Read: School reopening status across India (August 2021)
Posted in News, States
