AURANGABAD: The Aurangabad zilla parishad (ZP) and the district administration has decided to reopen schools for classes 8 to 12 in 901 Covid-free villages from July 15, a move that has been welcomed by several students and parents.
A communication to this effect has been jointly issued by ZP CEO Mangesh Gondawle and district collector Sunil Chavan. There are 1,369 villages in Aurangabad district.
In the initial weeks, classes will be held for limited hours — around 3-4 hours daily — without a lunch break. Though the schools will have drinking water arrangements, students will be advised to get their own water bottles.
Nitin Untwal, a parent who was relieved at the decision, told TOI, “Students from the rural and remote areas have suffered the most due to the lockdown as many did not have Android mobile phones to attend online classes. Besides, poor internet connectivity is common in villages. We welcome the move to reopen schools.”
Anna Patil, sarpanch of a village, said efforts were continuing to check the further spread of Covid. “Students missed a lot during the pandemic. We want them to resume classes at the earliest, else they will completely lose track of studies,” he said.
Gondawle told TOI, “Every Covid-free village will have a seven-member committee, comprising of the sarpanch, talathi, head of school management committee, health officer, gramsevak, headmaster or principal and centre head of the school. The committee will take a final decision on reopening schools.”
Gondawle said that as per norms, the committee will first have to check that the village has had no Covid cases for at least the past 30 days. Next, the committee will discuss the reopening of schools with villagers and parents.
Chavan said, “The committee will then have to send a proposal for reopening schools to the block development officer. The committee will also be responsible for ensuring that all teaching and non-teaching staff are vaccinated and have also undergone RT-PCR screening before resuming classes.”
On getting the clearance to reopen schools, the committees will run a sustained campaign, ‘Back to School’, so that every student who has missed physical classes as well as formal education in the past 18 months returns to school.
The committee will ensure availability of thermal screening devices, sanitizers, masks and soaps for hand wash in schools. Chavan said a list of directives related to cleanliness, personal hygiene and social distancing are expected to be followed at each school. To begin with, only a limited number of students will be permitted in each classroom.
