After a drastic decline in Covid-19 cases in recent months, the Jammu and Kashmir government has decided to reopen schools in a phased manner from February 1.
As per an order issued by the School Education Department, schools will reopen for students of class 9 to 12 in summer zone areas of the Jammu division from February 1 while for students of class 1 to 8, it will resume from February 8.
The schools in Kashmir division and winter zone areas of Jammu division will open as per their schedule (February 21), it said. “Standard Operation Procedures (SOPs) shall be followed in letter and spirit in addition to suggestions of district disaster management authorities,” the order reads.
The government has made it mandatory for all the students and teachers to wear face masks.
“Handwashing points with proper soap should be made available for the students and teachers. Everybody should wash hands frequently maintaining proper physical distance,” the order reads.
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Like the rest of the country, educational institutions in J&K were shut last March in the view of Covid-19 pandemic. However, schools in Kashmir valley have remained almost closed since 5 August 2019 when the Center revoked the special status of J&K and put the region under a security lockdown and a communication blackout.
Due to closure of schools, the J&K government had to announce a mass promotion for all students to the next level both in 2019 and 2020 except for students of class 10, 11 and 12 who appeared in annual board examinations.
There are some 13,800 schools across the Valley where some 1.2 million students study.
An official of the School Education department said, previously the schools had remained closed continuously for eight months from July 2016 to March 2017 when summer unrest broke out in Kashmir following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani.
In 1990, when militancy erupted, schools remained shut for five months from December 1989 to May 1990. “Back then, the schools couldn’t reopen on March 1 after winter break as the insurgency was at its peak. The schools opened on May 15, 1990, and again in September that year the schools had to be shut as the government employees went on a strike for 72 days,” he recalled.