The Covid-19 pandemic has adversely affected all sectors of society, but with students gone from the city, the peth areas, home to a number of coaching classes in Pune are facing the heat.
In the last 15 years, Pune has emerged as a hotspot for competitive exams and preparations. Students from across the country spend time in Pune for education. Due to Covid-19, 90 per cent of students have returned back to their villages and home towns, which affected an entire eco-system that depend on it.
From coaching classes, study circles, paying guest rooms, hostels, small snack centres to food mess have been hit.
In this first part of the story we will look at the impact on coaching classes and study circles where students prepared for competitive exams.
Before lockdown, these study circles were full and students were on a waiting list at prominent study circles in the city.
Similarly, after the completion of 10th and 12th standard, students signed up for coaching classes in preparation for their graduation course or competitive exams, however the pandemic has put this year’s admissions on hold.
“This is a big loss to the entire city’s economy due to the Covid-19 pandemic in the last 5 months. We haven’t received official permission from the state government about starting study circles in the state. As there are a large number of students who come from outside Pune for competitive exam preparations, the city’s economy had flourished in the last few years,” said Ajaiz Shaikh president of the Abhyasika Owners Association Maharashtra Rajya (AOAMR) who also is the owner of a ‘reader’s club’ study circle in Pune.
{{/usCountry}}“This is a big loss to the entire city’s economy due to the Covid-19 pandemic in the last 5 months. We haven’t received official permission from the state government about starting study circles in the state. As there are a large number of students who come from outside Pune for competitive exam preparations, the city’s economy had flourished in the last few years,” said Ajaiz Shaikh president of the Abhyasika Owners Association Maharashtra Rajya (AOAMR) who also is the owner of a ‘reader’s club’ study circle in Pune.
{{/usCountry}}According to Shaikh, the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the city largely, including the financial economy of the city that grew by Rs 3,000 crore yearly due to these students.
“Students want to come back and study in Pune to prepare for competitive exams. They are in need of privacy and a continuous link to studies which is not available in their own village or towns. They can live here separately, attend coaching classes and study at their study circles,” he added.
The situation of competitive exams institutions in Pune has also worsened in the last four months.
Jayant Umranikar, former Pune city police commissioner and the director of competitive examination centre in Savitribai Phule Pune University said, “There are several impacts on Pune due to the pandemic, especially on students who come to Pune for MPSC or UPSC studies. Till now there are no clear cut instructions coming from the state government about how they will monitor these exams, students’ return journey or the safety guidelines to coaching classes.”
According to Umranikar, due to the lack of proper guidelines hostels cannot be restarted since some of them have been converted into quarantine centres.
“This impacts adversely on the financial position of the coaching classes and their hostels if they have it. There is a financial aspect, safety grounds and most importantly students are in a confuse state whether to come back or not. The accommodation of students is a big issue and how do we appeal students to come back and join classes is another one. Some of the coaching classes have started online teaching, but it is very dangerous and students can get into financial frauds by fake coaching classes taking advantage of pandemic,” Umranikar said.