Nagpur rural schools to reopen from November 26, city ones to remain closed till December 13
NAGPUR: While city schools will remain closed till December 13, those in rural Nagpur will reopen from November 26. Yogesh Kumbhejkar, Zilla Parishad CEO, said the reopening will comply with all safety guidelines.
“We discussed the issue in detail with our education and health department. As per the state’s circular, all health and safety guidelines will be followed. Only Std IX-XII will reopen from Thursday,” said Kumbhejkar.
Apart from zilla parishad schools, there are many managed by tribal department, private aided and unaided management present in rural Nagpur. Khumbhejkar said Covid-19 testing for all teachers will be completed before reopening. “We have already started the testing and it is being well coordinated with our health department officials. Since we still have a few more days to go, testing for all eligible teachers will easily be completed,” he said.
Eligible teachers are those who teach Std IX-XII.
Speaking to TOI, he shared details about the format in which the reopening of schools will go ahead. “There will be a limit of four hours for daily classes. Also the timetable will be different because we do not want all classes to enter and exit at the same time,” said Kumbhejkar.
The way this new system will work is that a time gap between start of every class will be maintained. “So let’s say Std IX starts at 10am, then Std X will start at 10.30am. This staggered beginning of classes will ensure that crowding does not happen in corridors or campus,” said Kumbhejkar.
The other change in the ‘new normal’ is about breaks. “There won’t be the traditional lunch break now. School will be for three to four hours only. Food and water must not be exchanged among students to avoid spread of infection,” said Kumbhejkar.
Teachers can resume their duties from Monday itself to prepare for the eventual reopening later in the week. “For teachers no separate decision has been taken because the government has already allowed 50% of staff to be called for work. Since that order is still in force, teachers can be called in and prepare for their classes,” said Kumbhejkar.
District education officer Chintaman Vanjari said schools will be asked to ensure that all staff has cleared the Covid-19 test. “Only those who have tested negative shall be allowed on campus. Others can resume after completing their isolation period,” said Vanjari, who is also the administrative head for ZP schools.
Private unaided school principals say they might not open so soon. Principal of a high enrolment CBSE school said, “Very few parents have given their consent, so it makes no sense for us to physically reopen schools. We will wait for a few more days and again ask all parents, maybe they might change their view.”
“We discussed the issue in detail with our education and health department. As per the state’s circular, all health and safety guidelines will be followed. Only Std IX-XII will reopen from Thursday,” said Kumbhejkar.
Apart from zilla parishad schools, there are many managed by tribal department, private aided and unaided management present in rural Nagpur. Khumbhejkar said Covid-19 testing for all teachers will be completed before reopening. “We have already started the testing and it is being well coordinated with our health department officials. Since we still have a few more days to go, testing for all eligible teachers will easily be completed,” he said.
Eligible teachers are those who teach Std IX-XII.
Speaking to TOI, he shared details about the format in which the reopening of schools will go ahead. “There will be a limit of four hours for daily classes. Also the timetable will be different because we do not want all classes to enter and exit at the same time,” said Kumbhejkar.
The way this new system will work is that a time gap between start of every class will be maintained. “So let’s say Std IX starts at 10am, then Std X will start at 10.30am. This staggered beginning of classes will ensure that crowding does not happen in corridors or campus,” said Kumbhejkar.
The other change in the ‘new normal’ is about breaks. “There won’t be the traditional lunch break now. School will be for three to four hours only. Food and water must not be exchanged among students to avoid spread of infection,” said Kumbhejkar.
Teachers can resume their duties from Monday itself to prepare for the eventual reopening later in the week. “For teachers no separate decision has been taken because the government has already allowed 50% of staff to be called for work. Since that order is still in force, teachers can be called in and prepare for their classes,” said Kumbhejkar.
District education officer Chintaman Vanjari said schools will be asked to ensure that all staff has cleared the Covid-19 test. “Only those who have tested negative shall be allowed on campus. Others can resume after completing their isolation period,” said Vanjari, who is also the administrative head for ZP schools.
Private unaided school principals say they might not open so soon. Principal of a high enrolment CBSE school said, “Very few parents have given their consent, so it makes no sense for us to physically reopen schools. We will wait for a few more days and again ask all parents, maybe they might change their view.”
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