Haryana: Colleges prepare rosters for ‘Covid-free’ campus

GURUGRAM: The Haryana government has come out with specific guidelines for colleges offering technical courses, research facilities and other such programmes that require accessing the laboratory. While these institutions are likely to reopen from September 21, colleges have been asked to strictly adhere to the guidelines and ensure a “Covid-free campus” before that.
The department of higher education sent a letter to the colleges on Wednesday, specifically listing the guidelines that are in line with the Centre’s directives. From preparing a daily roster for students and teachers to ensure there is no crowding on the campus to leaving a 4-metre space for each student in the laboratory, the guidelines aim to make the campuses safe.

Among other guidelines are mandatory masks for students and teachers, temperature checks at entry gates and proper sanitisation of benches, swimming pools and classes. Even equipment at laboratories have to be kept 6 metres apart.
Colleges offering doctoral courses and skill or entrepreneurship training have been asked to encourage distance learning. “The SOPs aims to enable safe resumption of teaching/training activities in skill or entrepreneurship training institutions, higher educational institutions conducting doctoral courses and post-graduate studies in technical & professional programs requiring laboratory /experimental work,” read the guidelines issued by the Centre.
Education department officials said though these guidelines were meant for colleges offering specific courses, the same could also be applied to other higher educational institutions as well. The rules would come in handy as the government plans to conduct terminal examinations.
“Though these guidelines are for select colleges and training institutions, they have been directed to other colleges as well. We will be conducting final-year university exams by the end of this month. These guidelines will come handy in preparing the colleges for that as well,” said a senior education department official.
Apart from classrooms and laboratories, even hostels and canteens will have to undergo proper sanitisation. College authorities are now busy preparing a roster so that students can be called by rotation. The programme for the next academic year will be a mix of online and regular classes, the officials said. “The day-wise, time-wise scheduling of teaching/training activities may be done in a staggered manner so as to avoid overcrowding at any one location on any day. For practical activities in laboratories, maximum capacity per session based on redesigned spaces, may be planned and scheduled accordingly,” the letter read.
The colleges have been directed to conduct training in workshops and laboratories only after disinfecting the equipment. Students and teachers have been told to sanitise their hands before they start work.