The Manipur Education Minister S. Rajen on Thursday said that there were no plans to reopen schools and other educational institutes for now. He was talking to reporters to clarify news reports that said some private schools in two hill districts of the State had reopened, while schools in the valley districts were not allowed to reopen.
The reports had alleged that there are two sets of systems, one for the hill districts and another for the valley districts.
Mr. Rajen said, “We had closed the schools in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no fresh order to reopen any schools. We have written to the Home Department on the issue since this department has been giving the ‘go ahead’ orders.”
The schools have been closed since the beginning of this year.
He further said that there are no vaccines for children below 18 years. In case of fresh infections among school students, it would pose problems, he said.
Since no examinations were held, the students are promoted. Sources said private schools in Manipur had been instructed not to reopen the schools without specific approval from the Government. Reports from the hill districts say that schools were not open on Thursday in compliance with the fresh instructions of the State Government.
Meanwhile, students who have returned from almost all States are seeking admissions in Government schools since their parents are concerned about the threat of the virus.
