The government has been urged not to establish SSC Board examination centres in buildings that are now being used as quarantine centres for social distancing of people testing positive for the coronavirus.
In a letter addressed to Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, Bode Ramachandra Yadav, a social activist from Punganur in Chittoor district, said the reported decision to conduct 10th class exams by maintaining physical distance between students was appreciable, but the government should ensure that the exam centres were not set up in any of the buildings that now served as quarantine centres keeping in view the health aspect of the students.
School preparedness
The Krishna district unit of the Child Welfare Committee, meanwhile, has urged the government to take up preparedness of schools and hostels to combat the virus in the fresh academic year.
In a letter addressed to Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, committee Chairman B.V.S. Kumar said there was a need to relook at the availability of space to maintain physical distance among children on school campuses. There was a dire need to improve the infrastructure since it would not be possible to accommodate three-four children on a single bench like it was in the past.
Every school and hostel should have a hand-wash facility at the entrance and during lunch hour, teachers should supervise children to prevent exchange of lunch boxes or water bottles, screening of the children at the entrance with Infra Red Thermometers and setting up an isolation/sick room in every hostel to isolate children with suspected symptoms was mandatory.
