Tripura government has decided to cancel the scheduled summer vacation this year, which is scheduled to begin from May 17 owing to COVID-19 pandemic, informed education minister Ratan Lal Nath. He said the educational institutions of Tripura have been closed down after annual exams from March 17 and it was scheduled that from 1st April, the classes would be resumed normally.

Meantime, from March 24, the state government had announced a weeklong lockdown curfew but central government had announced nationwide lockdown till April 14 and then till May 3 next. "The schools could not publish the result yet and the books of new classes have not reached to state from outside publishers completely due to lockdown. If lockdown opens on May 3, immediately we have to publish the result and arrange to distribute the books among the students followed by the beginning of classes," Nath stated. The government is thinking of following physical distancing guidelines even after lockdown is lifted to prevent risk of COVID-19 or such type of virus spread in the schools.

Besides, periodical cleaning and disinfection of the classrooms, toilets and campus, the classes would be held with minimum students and in that case the timings of school might be changed, the minister stated. "We have also started the evaluation of answer scripts of the board exams with the available teachers in and around Agartala.

So that the students will not face any problem in higher studies. Tripura has so far only two cases of COVID-19 and one has been discharging and another recovering fast. Moreover, none of their close contacts was found positive; it indicates good sign because no outsider could enter in Tripura since March 24 last," Nath added.