Maharashtra: No decision on school restart yet, says Varsha Gaikwad

Maharashtra school education minister Varsha Gaikwad on Wednesday said they are yet to take a decision on reopening schools in the state. The state task force had a meeting with the school education department and asked them to make changes to the SOP prepared by them.

Maharashtra school education minister Varsha Gaikwad on Wednesday said they are yet to take a decision on reopening schools in the state. The state task force had a meeting with the school education department and asked them to make changes to the standard operating procedure (SOP) prepared by them.

From August 17, the school education department decided to reopen physical classes in schools even in urban areas. It was decided that the offline classes will be allowed for Class 8 to 12 in urban areas and for Class 5 to 7 in rural areas of the state. The decision was deferred following strong opposition from the state task force on Covid-19. (HT)

Following the changes, they will again meet to finalise the SOP. The proposal will then be sent to the chief minister for final approval.

“We had a meeting with the state task force as well as the paediatric task force last week, during which they asked us to make changes to the SOP. We have started our preparations. We will again have a meeting with the task force to finalise it and then a proposal will be sent to the chief minister for final approval,” Gaikwad said. “They also want us to brief parents and teachers on what they need to do when physical classes resume in schools for which we have started our preparations,” she added.

Physical classes in schools were shut in Maharashtra from March 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the state. On July 12, schools in rural areas were allowed to resume physical classes for Class 8 to 12 students in areas where Covid-19 cases are minimal. Nearly 17,701 schools resumed offline classes in rural areas, where Covid-19 cases are on the decline, said the officials.

On August 29, state health minister Rajesh Tope also said they are working on vaccinating all teaching and non-teaching staff by September 5, which will be their first step towards reopening schools in the state. “We have been asked to complete the vaccination drive of teaching and non-teaching staff by September 5. They have been asked to hold a special drive for the same, if required. This is a first step towards opening schools and the final decision will be taken after holding deliberations with the state task force,” he added.