SRINAGAR: Schools in Kashmir resumed class work for classes 9 to 12 on Monday after a year’s closure due to COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown amid a partial attendance of students and strict precautionary measures to contain the spread of the disease.
Some schools, however, could not take classes in view of the examinations scheduled by the Services Selection Recruitment Board (SSRB) at the institutions on the day. The institutions had been operational for barely two weeks before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown in mid March last year forced their closure. While the institutions in Kashmir, like elsewhere, switched to online mode of education, students in the valley were left high and dry due to the ban on high speed internet prevalent till recently. Although the authorities managed to hold the annual board examinations of the students amid strict precautionary measures, the institutions closed for winter vacation from December 21 to February 28 thereby officially pulling the curtains on the academic session. On Monday, the schools reopened for normal offline classes for classes 9 to 12 amid a staggered attendance of students to ensure social distancing inside the premises and strict precautionary measures like mask wearing and sanitization of the class rooms.
Class work for elementary classes will start next week, but teachers at such schools were asked to be present at the institutions from today only. While some schools reopened to half the number of students in order, management at others adopted the odd-even scheme to ensure a staggered attendance at the institutions and social distancing among students.
The staggered attendance scheduled by the institutions meant that the students could not get together with all their friends on the much anticipated reunion, but they acknowledged the importance of the precautionary measures.
