Schools and Colleges in India have remained closed since the earliest days of the ongoing pandemic in March 2020. Although a feeble attempt was made to re-open educational institutes earlier this year, the onset of the second wave of the pandemic in February-March 2021 jeopardized the plan. As the COVID-19 graph has reportedly taken a gradual downturn during the very recent past, state governments are looking forward to re-open schools from July 2021.
The Telangana state government recently proposed to re-open schools in the state voluntarily from July 01, 2021, as per latest reports. The state government has adopted a hybrid learning plan through online and offline modes thereby giving students the option to choose a preferred mode of attending classes when schools are re-opened. As per latest reports, the TS government has clarified in the High Court that it will not be mandatory for students to attend physical classes as they will have the option to continue with online classes. Those who however intend to attend physical classes have to submit consent letters signed by parents to the concerned school.
Bihar is one of those states who had conducted the board exams this year while most other states had to cancel. This is because the Bihar Secondary Education department conducted the exams early in February 2021, before the onset of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, as per latest reports, the Bihar Education Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary has recently spoken to the media indicating the possibility of re-opening schools from July 2021. Major media channels have reported that the Bihar government will allow only 50% attendance on alternate days once schools re-open. However, written consent of parents will be required. Similar to Telangana, attending classes will only be voluntary and students will have the opportunity to continue with online classes.
In Madhya Pradesh, the state government has decided against re-opening schools from July 2021. The Chief Minister of MP Shivraj Singh Chouhan has reportedly announced that schools will remain closed even after the end of summer vacations while classes will continue in the online mode only. In Madhya Pradesh, classes are set to resume in the online mode from July 01, 2021 although physical classes will not be resumed. The CM has clarified that until 100% vaccination and adherence to COVID protocols is not achieved, schools will not be re-opened in the state.
A similar stance has been adopted by the Jammu & Kashmir state government as well. The state government has announced that all educational institutes will remained closed now till at least July 15, 2021 thereby rejecting any possibility of re-opening of schools in the state. As per reports, eight districts in the Union Territory has exhibited significant recovery figures and it is necessary to continue with the strict protocols in order to achieve such downturn of the pandemic across all districts.
