Bihar: Schools reopen today for students of classes 9 to 12; check COVID-19 guidelines

In line with the announcement made by the Bihar State Government, schools, colleges, universities, coaching institutes are reopening from today i.e. January 4. Educational institutions are reopening for physical classes after a gap of over nine months amid strict adherence to COVID safety guidelines.

However, regular classes from class 9 onwards would commence at only half the strength of the total students and other protocols of coronavirus have to be followed strictly, Education Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Kumar told PTI on Sunday.

SOPs and guidelines for school reopening-

With schools slated to open from today, the state government has provided a detailed set of guidelines and SOPS to ensure the safe reopening of educational institutions.

The schools, which will open for classes 9 to 12 will be run with only 50% strength in order to maintain social distancing in the classrooms besides wearing masks on the campus.

"This means only half the strength of a class will join physical session at a time," Kumar said.

Wearing masks for all school students on the campus has been made mandatory without which they will not be allowed to enter the premises.

Two masks each will be distributed among the school children and teaching faculty will be made aware of the COVID-19 guidelines to be followed in the classroom, Kumar said.

The institute's management will ensure and maintain cleanliness and sanitation on their campuses, Kumar said while adding that "school authorities will keep a tab on whether any student is suffering from fever or having any symptoms of the virus."

The medical examination of students will be conducted on a "random" basis in government schools, the Principal Secretary said.

The decision to reopen educational institutions including schools, both government and private, for classes 9 to 12 from January 4, 2021, was taken at a meeting of Crisis Management Group (CMG) on December 18, 2020.

Schools and colleges in the state were closed in March 2020 after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country and lockdown measures were announced. Since then, educational and academic activities for all students were being held virtually through online classes.

Earlier, the state government had announced to reopen schools from classes 9 to 12 from September 28, 2020, but due to rising COVID-19 cases, the schools were remained shut.