State issues SOP for schools, vaccines mandatory for staff

Only those vaccinated staff members and students with no symptoms of Covid-19 will be allowed in the school

MUMBAI Maharashtra government on Monday issued standard operating procedures (SOP) for all schools to reopen for physical classes from December 1.

All teaching and non-teaching staff should be vaccinated in school (AP)

Only those staff members and students with no symptoms of Covid-19 will be allowed in the classroom. The government’s order says there should be no crowding in school buses, wearing of masks is compulsory for everyone, a distance of six feet has to be maintained, and all teaching and non-teaching staff should be vaccinated. Schools located in containment zones will not be allowed to open; neither will students living in containment areas be allowed to attend physical classes.

The SOP was issued by the directorate of health services (DHS) while an order allowing resumption of offline classes from December 1 was issued by the school education department.

On November 25, the state government had decided to reopen schools across the state from December 1. Prior to this, all classes barring Class 1 to 4 in rural areas and Class 1 to 7 in urban areas had resumed in the offline mode.

The SOP says, “Students who are unwell should avoid going to school. Activities such as mass prayers and sports must be avoided as they can lead to crowding; schools should refrain from using biometric attendance, swimming pools and follow strict Covid protocols for using gymnasiums.”

The SOP also lays down the guidelines in case a student is found Covid positive. “There is no need to panic in case a student is found with Covid-19 symptoms. Inform the parents and medical facility and keep the student in a separate room until he or she is attended by a doctor. Make a list of students who can be considered as close contacts and quarantine them at home for two weeks. The list includes students sitting up to three benches on the front, back, right and left rows of the classroom. Conduct RT-PCR for students developing Covid-19 symptoms and even though there is no symptom, get them tested within a period of five to ten days from the day he or she was home quarantined.”

The state has directed the schools to make arrangements for online classes of students quarantined at home, check the temperature of students for the next 10 days, and disinfect the classroom.

It has also made it mandatory for the schools to review the Covid-19 preventive action plan in case five or more students are found Covid positive in two weeks. They are also advised to take sufficient measures to ensure that an atmosphere of fear is not created in schools and among parents after students or staff found infected with Covid-19.

However, the order issued by the school education department directs the empowered committees to ensure school is shut down as soon as they find any student infected with Covid-19.

On August 10, the school education department formed empowered committees to ensure the guidelines and SOP being followed for reopening of schools in the state. In urban areas, the committee headed by a municipal commissioner has been empowered to take decisions while for rural areas committees are headed by district collectors.

The education department order reads, “Students having any symptoms should be immediately sent back to home and ensure he or she is tested for Covid-19. If found positive, the school should be immediately closed and sanitised. Students came in close contact should be tested for Covid-19.”

HT reached out to school education minister Varsha Gaikwad and additional chief secretary, school education Vandana Krishna to ask for clarifications for the contradictory guidelines. Neither responded to calls and text messages.

Meanwhile, state health minister Rajesh Tope said to ABP Mazha TV news channel, “There is no need to impose any restrictions and schools will reopen on December 1 as announced… there is no need to panic.”