Nagpur: In another development, schools in Maharashtra are all set to reopen from October 4. The announcement was made by state education minister Varsha Gaikwad.
Gaikwad claimed that chief minister Uddhav Thackeray has approved the decision of reopening classes from standard 8 to 12 in the urban areas and standard 5 to 12 in the rural areas. Gaikwad added that the state department has prepared an exhaustive standard operating procedure (sop) with the help of a pediatric task force.
“Covid-19 task force and the state health department have also approved the decision of reopening schools,” Gaikwad said. Several reports state that if the speculated third wave does not hit Maharashtra, then the schools can reopen in a phased manner after Diwali.
The SoPs include staggered school hours, social distancing inside the classroom, setting up school health clinics. Masks, santisation and staggered entry of students are the mandatory protocols that need to be followed. Until now schools were conducting physical classes only in those areas which were reporting relatively fewer cases of coronavirus.
Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday stated that the colleges in the state will be reopened in a phase wise manner after reviewing the Covid-19 protocols. The state government is likely to decide on reopening of colleges after October 2.
According to a report, the vaccination of children of the age 11 to 17 is likely to start by October 2.
