FAQ: When Will Schools Reopen in Delhi, Maha, Karnataka & TN?

Here’s all you need to know about when schools are likely to open and in which state. 

(Photo: Aroop Mishra/The Quint)

Following the Union Home Ministry’s guidelines allowing states a flexible approach in reopening schools, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and a few others have reopened schools in a graded manner, mostly for Classes 9 to 12.

While attendance in schools that opened for physical classes did not see a massive jump, some in Haryana, Himachal and Uttarakhand were forced to shut all schools in the state after a jump in number of students and teachers who tested positive.

This has also led states planning to reopen schools in a fix and many have gone back to the drawing board.

When are schools reopening in Maharashtra?

As Maharashtra records over 5,000 fresh cases of coronavirus for the fifth consecutive day, municipal bodies in Mumbai, Thane and Pune have decided to keep all schools within their respective districts shut till 31 December.

However, schools in rural areas and districts are expected to open from 23 November. The exact number and names of districts where schools will reopen remains unclear.

Earlier this month, the state government had announced that it was planning to reopen schools for Classes 11 to 12 from 23 November, but several districts had to put the plan on hold.

Are schools reopening in Delhi?

Hit by the third wave of coronavirus, schools in Delhi, which have been shut since the lockdown in March, will stay closed till further orders. On 28 October, the announcement was made by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who’s also the state’s Education Minister.

Delhi, which has been the six worst-hit state in terms of total disease burden, has recorded 5,29,863 cases so far. While there are about 40,212 active cases in the state so far, the number of daily deaths have remained above 100.

Will schools in Karnataka be reopened soon?

Following advice from an expert committee, schools and PU colleges in Karnataka will remain shut at least till the end of December, Chief Minster BS Yediyurappa said on Monday, 23 November.

“Schools in Karnataka will NOT open for the rest of this year. Expert Committee says they should stay shut till at least end December.”

BS Yediyurappa, Chief Minister, Karnataka 

Karnataka, which is the second worst-hit state, has recorded a total of 8.73 cases so far, out of which around 24,868 are active cases.

Why did Tamil Nadu not reopen schools in November?

Based on feedback from parents, Tamil Nadu had said that it’s earlier decision of reopening schools for Classes 9 to 12 from 16 November has been postponed. According to the government, fresh dates for reopening of schools will be announced after taking the COVID-19 situation into consideration.

Tamil Nadu has so far recorded 7,69,995 cases of COVID-19, with around 1,655 people testing positive for the virus on Sunday, 22 November.

What about Gujarat, Rajasthan & Odisha?

Gujarat: Schools in the state were supposed to reopen for Classes 9 to 12 from 23 November, but the decision has been put on hold at the last minute.

Rajasthan: Schools in Rajasthan have been asked to remain shut till 30 November and a decision on this will be taken following an assessment of the coronavirus situation later this month.

Odisha: After initial hopes of reopening in November, all schools in Odisha have been asked to remain shut till 31 December, after consulting various stakeholders and looking at case studies of schools reopening elsewhere.

What happened in states which reopened schools?

So far, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Assam and Goa have reopened schools.

Andhra Pradesh: Just a week after Andhra Pradesh Reopened schools for Classes 9 to 12 on 2 November, around 829 teachers and 575 teachers tested positive for the virus. However, schools remained open in the state and students of Class 8 will start going back to school from 23 November.

Haryana: Schools in Haryana have been shut for ten days till 30 November, after around 150 students across several government schools tested positive for coronavirus, barely two weeks after they were reopened for Classes 9 to 12.

Himachal Pradesh: The state government has decided to shut all schools till 25 November, after around 216 school teachers and 86 students tested positive. Schools in the state were earlier reopened for Classes 9 to 12 from 2 November.