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Schools reopen from 23rd Nov
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MUMBAI: CM Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday allowed schools in the state to reopen for classes IX to XII after Diwali. Shrines, too, may be opened after the festival, he said. The school education department, whose proposal to resume schools TOI reported in its Saturday edition, has set November 23 as the date to resume physical classes. The CM chaired a meeting of the department to review the standard operating procedures that schools must follow. Min: Physical classes only for subjects like maths & science
CM Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday allowed schools in the state to reopen for Classes IX to XII after Diwali. At Saturday’s meeting, state school education minister Varsha Gaikwad said a mass drive of RT-PCR testing of teachers will be conducted by local administrations between 17 and 22 November. Only those teachers whose reports are negative will be allowed to conduct classes. She further said in order to follow Covid protocols, thermal screening of all students will be done before they are allowed inside classrooms and seating arrangements will be changed to allow only one child per bench.Classes will be held on an alternate-day basis. And physical classes will not be on for more than four hours. Only select subjects such as maths and science where teachers’ intervention is required will be taken up for physical classes, the remaining subjects will continue online,” Gaikwad said.
Senior officials said starting physical schools is not compulsory for schools and even for students. Online classes for all subjects will continue. A consent form from parents will be mandatory for allowing students to attend classes.
Most schools may still decide to wait and watch. Principals whom TOI spoke to said that they would consult parents about their views before taking a call on reopening.Gaikwad said the department will hold discussions with local administrations, and schools will be started in a phase-wise manner. As part of the new normal, there will be no tiffin breaks for students; they will have to eat from home and go to school. Water bottles will have to be carried individually and common water-filling spots will be discontinued.
While the Centre allowed partial reopening of schools for higher standards from September 21, the Maharashtra government had decided in a Cabinet meeting in October that the state would think about this post-Diwali.