Uttarakhand announces reopening of schools from August 2, issues SOP

The Education Department of Uttarakhand has recently announced the reopening of schools and issued Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for all the schools in the state. According to the SOP, classes 6 to 12 will resume.

Uttarakhand school reopening

As instructed by the Education Department of Uttarakhand on Saturday, classes for the students of classes 6 to 12 will be resumed in the state. As per that, the schools will resume for the students of class 9-12 from August 2 and from August 16 for 6-8. Confirming the same, Uttarakhand Education Minister Arvind Pandey tweeted and said, "All schools have been asked to strictly follow COVID-19 protocols and classes will function in two shifts where number of students is higher."

The State Education Secretary Radhika Jha after issuing the SOP said that the classes for 9 to 12 will commence from August 2, and classes for 6 to 8 will be conducted from August 16 in the schools of all education boards.

Guidelines for Schools Reopening in Uttarakhand 

Talking about the guidelines placed for the school, the order states that the different places in the school including classrooms, laboratories, libraries, toilets, and drinking water places should be thoroughly sanitized. 

In that case, a nodal officer will be nominated by the concerned school who will be taking care of the guidelines related to social distancing and COVID-19 protocols. Anyone showing symptoms of COVID-19 will be sent back home after giving the first aid. Also, if cases of infections grow among the students, teachers, or staff members, it will be informed to the district administration or the health department immediately. 

Online classes for classes from 1 to 5 will continue as earlier. However, other students can come to school only after receiving the consent of their parents or guardians. Also, they won't be forced to attend the classes physically as the option of online classes will remain open for all.

Earlier, the Punjab Govt had also announced the reopening of schools in the state from August 2, Monday. Issuing a statement, it said, "All schools are allowed to open for all classes from 2nd August 2021. They shall follow proper protocol to ensure Covid-19 appropriate behaviour. Department of School Education shall issue instructions in this regard."

(Image credits: ANI)