Rajasthan orders closure of school for classes 1-8 in Jaipur till January 9

Omicron variant: The Rajasthan government capped the number of people attending political and other rallies, dharnas, fairs and weddings at 100 and ordered closure of schools for classes 1 to 8

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan government on Sunday ordered all government and private schools in Jaipur to remain closed for classes 1 to 8 from January 3 till January 9 in view of an increase in Covid-19 cases in the state capital. In other districts of the state, the district collector has been authorised to make a decision on continuing educational activities after discussion with the additional chief secretary who oversees the education department, according to fresh Covid-19 guidelines notified by the Rajasthan government on Sunday.

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Ghelot has said that the level of vigilance and alertness maintained during the first and the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic needs to be followed. (PTI)

The fresh order was issued after chief minister Ashok Gehlot held a meeting with religious leaders, political parties and NGOs regarding prevention and precautions of increasing cases of Covid-19 new variant Omicron.

Jaipur has reported the bulk of the fresh Covid cases in the state. Of the 355 fresh cases reported by Rajasthan on Sunday, 224 were from Jaipur, followed by 34 from Jodhpur, 24 from Ajmer, 12 from Pratapgarh, 11 each from Alwar and Kota, and six each from Bhilwara and Udaipur.

Regular teaching activities in all government and private schools of Jaipur Municipal Corporation area (Greater/Heritage) for classes I to 8 will be closed from January 3 to January 9, said a state government statement.

School authorities will also need to get written approval of parents to let students of other classes come to school. They have been barred from pressuring parents to send their children to school for offline classes and told to encourage students to opt for online classes.

Universities will have to ensure that students and faculty have received the two vaccine doses.

The government has also introduced a cap of 100 people who can attend any marriage ceremony, public, social, political, sports, entertainment, cultural, and religious functions and gatherings.

Besides, it is mandatory to organise video-recording of the wedding. The recording will need to be produced before the authorities in case of complaints of violations. In case there are violations, the premises where the event was held is liable to be sealed for seven days.

The guidelines cap the number of people allowed in a funeral at 20.

Religious places where there is a system of online darshan will continue. There will be a ban on carrying flowers-garlands, prasad, chadar, and other worship materials to religious places.

Domestic travellers arriving in Rajasthan will have to produce double vaccine certificates or RT-PCR negative test reports not older than 72 hours, the guidelines stated.

The government also directed all commercial establishments to ensure double vaccination of all staffers by January 31.