Up to 262 students and about 160 teachers tested positive in Andhra Pradesh during the past three days after schools were reopened on November 2 for students in classes 9 and 10, a senior school education official said Thursday.
School Education Commissioner V Chinna Veerabhadrudu said the figure is not alarming compared to the number of students attending schools, although every precaution is being taken to ensure that COVID-19 safety protocols are in place in all institutions.
“Yesterday (November 4) around four lakhs of students attended the schools. There were 262 positive cases. It is not even 0.1 percent. It is not correct to say that they were affected by their attendance at schools. We make sure that each classroom in the school has only 15 or 16 students, “the official told PTI, adding that” it is not alarming.
According to statistics provided by the department, there are 9.75 lakhs of students registered for classes 9 and 10 in the state, of which 3.93 lakh attended, out of 1.11 lakh for teachers, more than 99,000 thousand attended classes. educational institutions on Wednesday.
Out of 1.11 lakh teachers, about 160 tested positive, he added.
“The lives of both students and teachers are important to us,” he said.
According to him, student attendance at schools was around 40 percent, as parents still fear the killer virus despite strict measures by the government.
Veerabhadrudu said that poor students who cannot pay for classes online are the hardest hit if schools are not open and it is a dilemma for female students from tribal and rural areas, as parents can afford child marriages if teenagers leave. going to school.
All government schools and universities reopened as of November 2 for classes 9, 10 and intermediate.
Classes 9 and 10 and the first and second intermediate years would operate on alternate days only for half a day.
Classes 6, 7 and 8 would begin on November 23, while classes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 would begin on December 14, according to an official statement.
All educational institutions have been closed since March when the national shutdown was announced to contain the spread of COVID-19. PTI GDK SS PTI PTI
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