Delhi: Parents demand reopening of schools for primary students

The protesting parents, led by the Delhi State Public Schools' Management Association, said that since anganwadis, courts, and classes from 9th till 12th standards have resumed functioning, the students of primary section should also be allowed back into schools.

A group of parents staged a protest near Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence here on Saturday, demanding that students of classes 1 to 8 be allowed back into schools.

Some schools said they would be following a first-come-first-serve system for nursery admissions. (HT Archive)

The protesting parents, led by the Delhi State Public Schools' Management Association, said that since anganwadis, courts, and classes from 9th till 12th standards have resumed functioning, the students of primary section should also be allowed back into schools.

Chairman of the Delhi State Public Schools' Management Association R C Jain said the government should give the parents an option of sending their children to school along with continuing online teaching.

"The government should issue an SOP that those who can and want their children to attend offline classes should follow some guidelines, and the rest can continue through online medium," Jain told PTI.

He added that after over a year away from school, the children have become frustrated and their parents are also finding it difficult to go to their work and taking care of the child's education at the same time.

Educational institutions in the national capital were shut in March last year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Phased reopening of educational institutions has begun in the national capital.