After almost 10 months, universities and colleges in Uttarakhand are reopening under COVID-19 guidelines. SOP for the reopening of universities and colleges has already been released by the state education department Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand Om Prakash.
The decision to open colleges and Universities from December 15 was taken at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
According to the SOP, students have to undergo the RTPCR test before coming to classes. No student will be allowed to attend college or school without a written consent from parents
Colleges have been ordered to reopen with only 50 percent capacity. In the first phase, only those students who have practical subjects will be called to the school while theory classes could be held online.
The order maintains that classes can only be held for the students in either the first or the last semester. In order to manage the number of students, several measures have been suggested to the college management by the government.
The SOP further suggests the use of virtual labs to conduct classes for some of the practical subjects.
(Image Source INDIA TV)
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The guidelines said universities and colleges have to be sanitized before they are opened. Arrangement of sanitizer, handwash, thermal scanning, and first aid will have to be done at the main entrance of the college building. Every student and employee must wear a mask.
As per the guideline, six feet distance is mandatory in class between students and the movement of outsiders in college premises will be banned. Any person who shows symptoms of coronavirus will be sent back immediately. Action will be taken against the principal, teachers, staff, and students of the college who do not follow the guidelines for opening the college under the sections of the epidemic act.
It has been clarified in the SOP that it is mandatory for students coming from other states and residing in hostels, day scholars to undergo the COVID-19 test.
The government has made it clear that the principal, management committee, and vice-chancellor will be authorized to take the final decision given the circumstances of colleges and universities for starting offline studies.
There are about 29 government and private Universities in the state, and the number of students in colleges is more than 5 lakhs.
While conducting classes, it has been mandatory to follow the respective guidelines of the University Grants Commission in addition to the SOP issued to take all necessary measures to prevent coronavirus infection.
But opening schools at this point in time, is safe? will it work successfully? we ll see to that.
(With inputs from DNA India )
