Schools and colleges will reopen in a phased manner in Andhra Pradesh from November 2, the state government announced on Thursday. Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney said in a statement that all government schools and colleges would reopen from November 2 for Classes 9, 10 and Intermediate, with all necessary precautionary measures to check the spread of coronavirus.
Classes 9 and 10, and Intermediate first and second year (equivalent to classes 11 and 12) would function on alternate days only for half-a-day. Classes 6, 7 and 8 would begin on November 23, on a half-day basis, while classes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 would start from December 14.
"Classes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 would start functioning from December 14 on alternate days and on a half-a-day basis. The same schedule would apply to all government schools and colleges," Nilam Swahney said.
The date for reopening schools was already communicated earlier. With this announcement, the uncertainty over reopening of colleges has also been cleared. All the higher secondary colleges would also start functioning from November 2 on a rotation basis.
The schools will be run on alternate days in three phases for which officials are making arrangements. "Schools would be run on alternate days in three phases for which officials are making arrangements. Precautionary measures would be taken to contain the spread of COVID-19," Nilam Sawhney said.
As of Thursday, the Andhra Pradesh government has recorded 26,268 active COVID-19 cases. The number of cases registered has been declining steadily over the past several weeks.
Educational institutions in the state have remained closed since March due to the pandemic. Though the state government had considered reopening schools almost a month ago, on September 5, it extended the reopening in light of COVID-19 spread and Unlock guidelines from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
From September 21, schools and junior colleges have been partially reopened for students of class 9, 10 and intermediate to meet teachers and have their doubts clarified. A few instances of COVID-19 infections among students attending school in this manner have surfaced over the past few weeks.
With inputs from PTI and IANS