Telangana schools, colleges to reopen under Covid norms

The Telangana government will reopen schools and colleges from 1 February, but Covid-19 protocols will be strictly followed.

Maintaining physical distance norms as prescribed in the classrooms as well as in the premises of the institutions will be made mandatory. Students willing to attend the classes should compulsorily obtain written consent of their parents. In addition to following the distance protocols, it would be made mandatory for ensuring sanitation of the institutions from time to time so as not to give scope for any complaints. Telangana education minister Sabitha Indra Reddy has assured parents that physical classes will not be mandatory for the students. If parents are unwilling to send their children back to schools then they can attend online classes, she said.

The education minister met representatives of Hyderabad Schools Parents Association (HSPA) and higher officials of the education department on Tuesday.The HSPA members reminded the minister that recently the Supreme Court had refused to start physical hearings and continue virtual hearings after medical experts warned of the dangers of spreading Covid-19 if physical hearings are started.

The Education minister assured the parents that physical classes will not be mandatory and students can continue to attend online classes. Reddy also assured them that attendance will not be compulsory and students will not be detained for shortage of attendance. The HSPA requested the minister to decide a percentage of fee reduction in view of the pandemic and loss of income of parents and decide the fee to be paid in proportion to the salaries and rents paid by the private schools. It also requested the minister to expedite the constitution of a fee regulation committee and decide the fee to be collected by private schools. Direct the private schools to give break-up of fees collected by them instead of showing the entire fee as tuition fee, the parents requested the minister.

The minister assured that necessary instructions will be issued by the education department to the private schools asking them not to collect Aadhaar details of students. The association also brought up the issue of filing of criminal cases against parents on the basis of a complaint filed by St. Andrews school and alleged that they continue to violate GO 46 and RTE Act and are removing students from schools on the pretext of shortage of attendance in online classes.