Education Ministry survey: Over 90% J&K schools have handwash facility to keep COVID at bay

Srinagar:  A new study has revealed that more than 90 percent of schools in Jammu and Kashmir have created handwashing stations after resuming offline teaching

The survey was conducted by the Ministry of Education’s Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE),  It revealed that 95.28 percent of the government schools, which makes 22074 institutes, have handwash facilities for the children.

The hand wash facility includes the availability of clean water, hand sanitizers, and soaps within the school washrooms.

 The survey said that all the government-aided schools in the union territory have established this facility. Private schools as per the survey have hand wash facilities in 97.38 percent (5501)institutes.

Ahead of the re-opening of the schools, the government had made vaccination compulsory for students for attending in-person classes.

Initially, the schools initiated various steps including breaking classes into even-odd groups as part of anti-covid measures.

Directorate of School Education (DSEK) officials said they have tried their best to maintain hygiene in the government-run schools.

 “Hygiene has been our prime focus. We have a tap water facility in 100 percent of schools in Jammu and Kashmir. An equal focus is given to the healthy mid-day meal for the children,” they said.

President Private Schools Association Jammu and Kashmir G N Var said they framed a protocol to maintain hygiene within schools.  

 “To maintain hand hygiene, soaps and hand wash gels are being kept available in the washrooms. The private schools have also kept available clean drinking water for the children apart from regular sanitation drives,” he said.

Doctors said people learned to maintain hygiene during the last two years of the pandemic.

 “Hand wash, in particular, is an essential component of hygiene. The pandemic allowed us to maintain personal hygiene. If we follow protocols, we will be less exposed to microbes and infections,” said Prof Muhammad Salim Khan, head department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Srinagar.