PremiumThis came as the directorate of education issued a fresh advisory for private schools on Thursday, directing them to close the entire premises or specific wings temporarily if any student or staff tests positive for Covid-19
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NEW DELHI : Offering an explanation on the guidelines issued by Delhi directorate of education, Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia on Friday said that only a specific wing or classrooms where a Covid-19 case has been detected should be shut temporarily.
He clarified that the entire school should only be closed in specific cases.
“We haven't asked them to close schools. Our guidelines say that only a specific wing or classroom where someone was found Covid positive should be temporarily closed," said Sisodia.
"Schools can take a decision to close the entire premises in specific cases where an infected child or staff has been through multiple areas of the school. We have made it decentralised," he added.
Further, the deputy CM said that the Covid-19 situation in the national capital will be reviewed in the next DDMA meeting.
"We will review the Covid situation in our next DDMA meeting on 20 April. There are experts who are keeping an eye on new variants and they will present their observations and analysis in the context of Delhi, which will help us make an informed decision," said Sisodia.
This came as the directorate of education issued a fresh advisory for private schools on Thursday, directing them to close the entire premises or specific wings temporarily if any student or staff tests positive for Covid-19.
The department also said students and staff must wear masks and maintain social distancing to the extent possible.
The maintenance of social distancing and regular washing of hands, use of sanitisers, and an awareness programme were also emphasised in the advisory.
Earlier, a teacher and a student of a private school in South Delhi were found Covid-19 positive, following which, other students who were in the same class were sent home.
In view of this, Arvind Kejriwal-led government is expected to come out with more guidelines for schools amid concerns over the rise in coronavirus cases in the national capital.
Delhi reported 325 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, while the positivity rate stood at 2.39%, according to data shared by the city’s health department.
It assumes importance as the schools started to function fully offline from 1 April after all the curbs related to Covid were lifted on 28 February considering the low positivity rate.