The State government is mulling reopening of schools in the State.
Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty on Thursday said an expert committee would be set up to look into practical aspects related to school reopening.
The report of the committee and a project on the reopening would be submitted to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Mr. Sivankutty said.
An online meeting of public health experts that was convened by the Chief Minister on Wednesday had discussed the possibilities of school reopening. Schools in many States are reopening in a phased manner despite fears of a potential third wave of COVID-19.
Schools in the State have remained closed since March last year, except for three months from January this year for Classes 10 and 12 that were appearing for the public examinations.
However, immediate reopening of schools like in neighbouring States such as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka that have managed to bring down the case graph may be difficult here owing to the high caseload and test positivity rate.
No time frame
General Education Secretary A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish told The Hindu that there could not be any time frame for the school reopening. The expert committee had to be set up and it would need to hold wide-ranging discussions with both experts and laymen before a decision.
The situation in Kerala was not the same as that in other States that had gone in for partial reopening. Many determinants had to be taken into account here. One was the prevalent TPR. Then, the level of vaccination among schoolchildren. Factors such as how many students could be allowed together at one time, how many in a classroom, and how much physical distancing also had to be considered.
When schools had opened for three months earlier this year for students, a few higher secondary schools had to be closed down after a large number of students and teachers tested positive. This will also weigh on the authorities’ mind.
Disscussion to be held
B. Ekbal, chair of the State’s experts’ committee on COVID-19, said the panel would hold discussions with the Education Department soon.
At the meeting convened by the Chief Minister on Wednesday, experts suggested schools be reopened from primary classes upwards as they were better abled to handle the virus. The Indian Council of Medical Research too had in July suggested opening primary schools first.
The experts also opined that there was evidence that school closure had limited or no impact on COVID-19. Daily screening for students, regular testing, contact tracing for students, monitoring of contract intensity were also recommended.
