Maharashtra schools reopen today for Classes 1 to 12; Pune schools to remain shut

Mumbai: Maharashtra schools for Classes 1 to 12 will reopen today for physical classes. The decision to resume offline classes was taken after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray approved a proposal sent to him by the school education department.

According to the Covid-19 guidelines issued by the government, the school education minister Varsha Gaikwad said it is mandatory to have the consent of parents for attendance. She further requested parents to not send students to school if they are unwell. Moreover, schools were asked to ensure isolation facilities in case any student shows symptoms.

Schools in Maharashtra were closed in the first week of January due to a spike in the coronavirus cases and in the wake of the emergence of the highly infectious Omicron variant. However, a number of parents, activists in the field as well as teachers had strongly opposed the move to shut the schools, saying it would adversely affect the students.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday said no decision has been taken regarding resumption of physical classes at schools in Pune district as COVID-19 cases are on the rise.

In Mumbai, the local civic body had announced the closure of schools for Classes 1 to 9 till January 31. However, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) assessment had indicated that the cases of Omicron infection are not on the rise, and it had said that the curve was flattening. It prompted the officials to propose the reopening of schools for physical attendance.

"Our SOPs are very strict and clear. We have given four days advance notice to the management of schools to undertake vaccination and sanitisation and for preparation of time-table. The timing and other necessary decisions will be taken by the local authorities, such as district collector or municipal commissioner based on the local situations," Gaikwad said. On Wednesday, she had said that a proposal to reopen the schools in the state had been sent to the chief minister for his approval.