Amid surge in Covid-19 cases, Delhi government issues new SOPs for schools

Amid the rising cases of Covid-19 in Delhi, the state government has now issued new guidelines for schools. The new SOPs state that no student or staff should be allowed entry into school premises without thermal scanning and if any of them tests Covid positive, the institute's authorities must take appropriate quarantine measures.

The guidelines were issued in the wake of a spike in coronavirus patients in the city that on Thursday logged 965 cases, 1,009 on Wednesday, 632 on Tuesday, and 501 on Monday.

Schools have also been advised to ask students to not share lunch and stationery items, the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the city government stated.

Parents should be advised to not send their ward to school if the child or any member in the family tests positive or shows Covid symptoms, it said.

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"If a student, as well as staff member, displays any Covid symptoms, they should be moved away from other people into an outdoor ventilated space or quarantine room," the SOP stated.

"Teachers are also directed to report to the principal immediately if any student in the class is found with Covid symptoms. The same must be reported to zonal and district authorities and the school may close specific wing temporarily or the area may be cordoned off," it stated.

All entry and exit gates of school buildings should be used to avoid crowding at the time of entry and exit of students, it stated.

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"Help of volunteers may be taken to avoid crowding and maintaining of Covid-appropriate behaviour (CAB). No student and staff should be allowed to enter premises without thermal scanning," the SOP added.

Reports of infections from schools have triggered concerns weeks after they opened for offline classes following a two-year gap due to the pandemic.

Experts have been warning against the closure of schools yet again citing learning losses.

Schools across Delhi-NCR have sprung into action following a spike in Covid cases and are taking various measures, including frequent sanitisation, to restrict the spread of the virus to a minimum and thus avoid a shutdown of the campus.

The Haryana education department has directed schools in the state not to make it mandatory for students to attend physical classes at a time when scores of students and staff in institutes across NCR cities have been diagnosed with Covid-19.

The Delhi government had last week issued guidelines for schools asking them to close specific wings or classrooms wherever any student or teacher is found infected.