Pune school shut down after teacher tests COVID positive

Pune school shut down after a teacher-tested COVID positive. Civic officials are now preparing to reopen the school after testing the remaining staff.

On Friday, Kondhwa’s Sri Sant Gadge Maharaj School, one of the largest civic-run schools in the city, was shut down after a teacher-tested positive and 12 other teachers took the RT-PCR tests the same day. On Sunday, the negative reports of the twelve teachers were received by civic officials. However, with no fresh symptomatic cases being reported among students or teaching and non-teaching staff, the officials are now preparing to reopen the school.

In a step toward that direction, the remaining staff have taken the RT PCR tests, which is mandatory before restarting physical classes as per protocol.

Schools in the city resumed physical classes for Class 9 to 12 since January 4 and Class 5 to 8 since February 1.

Kondhwa’s Sri Sant Gadge Maharaj School houses six primary schools on the same campus, all of them offering three different mediums of instruction.

There are 1,165 students enrolled between Class V to VIII, but only 694 parents agreed to send students to school for physical classes. Around 460 students were attending classes before it was closed and they have been asked to remain in home isolation.

There are a total of 55 secondary school and 16 Balwadi (nursery) teachers, besides 17 non-teaching staff at the school.