Tamil Nadu schools to reopen on September 1 for Classes IX-XII

CHENNAI: The state government has planned to reopen schools on September 1 for Classes IX, X, XI and XII, chief minister M K Stalin said on Friday.
Medical colleges and institutes for nursing, para-medical and allied health sciences will be allowed to reopen from August 16. Schools must follow Covid-19 protocol measures and should not have more than 50% students in a class at a time, a statement said.
The CM arrived at the decision after reviewing the Covid-19 situation along with health experts and government officials at a meeting on Friday. The present lockdown which would end on August 9 has been extended till 6am on August 23, the CM said.
To control the spread of infection, public worship would be prohibited at all places of worship on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from August 9. Stalin said medical experts had unanimously batted for reopening of schools. “Experts said that staying at home for several months without going to school causes great stress among children and a large learning gap in society. They also pointed out that online classes are not available to most children,” he said.
The school education department has been told to take up the preliminary work. The infectious disease has been brought under control due to the effective measures taken by collectors, corporation commissioners and police in areas where public gather. Awareness is also on the rise after state-wide programmes were launched last week. The chief minister said the health and family welfare department would release standard operating procedure for medical colleges. The students and faculty members of medical colleges have already been vaccinated as they are treated as health staff.
The local bodies should ensure that meat and fish stalls are separated and they are sold in open places to avoid crowding, the chief minister said. Everyone should take a pledge to prevent the spread of the virus, Stalin said.