Students of classes 9 to 12 and colleges will be back in class, physically, from September 1, the state government announced today.
In urban areas, classes 1 to 5 will still run online, while those between 6 and 8 will be through “school visits”, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said.
Rural schools, however, will also have classes 6 to 8 in person, while 1-5 will be through school visits.
Sangma informed that the government is encouraging all teachers to be vaccinated against Covid-19, while those who cannot or choose not to will have to produce a negative RT-PCR test every 10 days.
“From the students’ point of view, there will not be any specific conditions. But we have seen that a large number of college students are vaccinated and we are hopeful that more will come forward to get the jab,” the CM said.
The Education Department has mandated that parents give their consent to the physical presence of their wards in class.
Teaching hours will also be limited to three or four hours per day. The Deputy Commissioners have also been empowered to assess the risk locally and decide on reopening of schools.
“In this regard, a task force committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner to monitor the resumption and safe operation of schools shall be constituted,” the department stated.
