Assam's Chief Secretary weighs in on reopening of schools; here's what he said

Guwahati: Weighing in on the million-dollar question on the reopening of schools in Assam, the state's Chief Secretary Kumar Sanjay Krishna today said that a final call is yet to be taken as far as returning students back to their educational institutions is concerned.

"Discussions are still going on and teachers have been asked to return from September 1. However, no final decision has been taken yet in regards to returning students to their respective schools", the Chief Secretary said today on the sidelines of an event

At the same time, Assam minister of state for education Bhabesh Kalita has said that the Government, for the moment, has prioritized the safety measures in these educational students before students return once classes are officially resumed.

"Our first priority is to sanitize the schools from September 1 to 15. Our second priority is to ensure the social distancing by arranging the seats by following the protocol measures," Kalita told media persons on Friday.

Currently, the teachers and other education sector employees are being tested for the COVID-19 virus before their return to the campuses following the Government's order. Assam's Education and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had recently stated that the employees under the sector must mandatorily get themselves tested for the virus from August 21 to 30.

Following this, they are to report back to their respective workplaces from September 1. Failure to do this shall see them marked as "on leave", Sarma had announced during a recent presser.

Speculation has been growing over the reopening of the educational institutions as there appears to be uncertainty surrounding the reopening of educational institutes in Assam from September 1 as initially planned by the health department.

The Unlock 3 guidelines released on 29 July 2020 allowed many activities including commercial operations to restart, but kept schools closed. As per reports, the Centre is in consultation with state governments, the health ministry, and parents to draft guidelines around school reopening. However, parents and some states are reluctant because of concerns over the safety of the children.

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