Schools reopen in West Bengal today; classes 9-12 to resume

There are around 36,000 government and government-aided secondary schools, around 14,000 higher secondary schools and 636 madrasas in the state

Schools in West Bengal reopened on Friday after a gap of 11 months because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Representational Image. (HT photo)

“Schools would reopen from Friday. As of now, we are resuming classes 9 – 12. Lower classes (up to 8) may resume in phases at a later stage,” said a senior official of the state education department.

There are around 36,000 government and government-aided secondary schools, around 14,000 higher secondary schools and 636 madrasas in the state. Many schools are likely to organise Saraswati Puja this year on February 16.

“A detailed 50-page guideline detailing the do’s and don’ts, role of teachers, guardians and students, checklists and what preparations need to be made before reopening and during school hours have already been sent to schools,” said the official.

Apart from wearing masks, maintaining social distancing and using sanitisers, the list includes setting up of an isolation room, sanitisation at regular interval, cancellation of assembly for prayers (prayers to be done in class rooms), and no sharing of books and tiffin among students. At no point of time, students are to be left on their own.

“The guideline is detailed and exhaustive. But it would be difficult to follow each and every point with limited infrastructure. It says sweepers much be adequately trained in sanitisation and waste disposal. Many schools in the state do not have sweepers. The posts have been lying vacant for many years now,” said a school teacher.

The state education department had earlier planned to reopen schools in October 2020, but as it was the festive season and the pandemic was raging, the authorities postponed the move.

Over the past few months, the number of cases has gone down drastically and at present, the state is registering less than 200 new cases and fewer than 10 deaths every day.