Uttarakhand schools reopen for classes 1 to 5 from today; Check guidelines

Considering the COVID-19 pandemic situation in the state, the Uttarakhand government has decided to reopen schools for classes 1-5 from today, September 21. According to the department of school education, classes will be held for only three hours a day and students will not be allowed to bring food to school. 

Earlier in August, schools in Uttarakhand had first reopened for classes 9-12 and then for classes 6-8 in line with COVID-19 guidelines. 

School reopening COVID protocols in Uttarakhand 

School authorities must follow COVID prevention protocol including proper sanitization of the entire premises, arrangements for sanitizers, handwash, thermal scanning, and first aid. Also, drinking water areas should be kept clean and the quality of water should be checked frequently. 

For children to attend physical classes, written consent from their parents is required which should be submitted to school authorities within three days of attending school. A hybrid model of schooling will be adopted where students are given the option of attending online or offline classes. 

If any student experience cough, cold, or fever must be sent back home immediately. While, all the teachers, school staff and students should war makes compulsorily before entering the school or classrooms and social distancing is to be maintained.

COVID-19 situation in Uttarakhand

To date, Uttarakhand has reported a total of 3.43 lakh COVID cases with 7,390 deaths. The state has administered a total of 1,00,31,731 COVID vaccine doses across 722 vaccination sites. While Uttarakhand CM Dhami had said that the state government is looking forward to vaccinating the overall population with their first doses by the end of September and is further aiming to provide the second doses by December 15, 2021. He added that around 92% of the population has already been inoculated with the first COVID-19 vaccine dose. 

Earlier on September 7, the Uttarakhand government had extended with some relaxation, till September 14. The extended COVID-19 curfew was in effect from 6 a.m. on September 7 to 6 a.m. on September 14, as reported by ANI. Vaccination for COVID-19 continued in the state during the extended COVID-19 curfew. All social, political, and entertainment-related gatherings were restricted in the state. 

(Image: PTI)