West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee said the state does not have any plans to start physical classes in colleges and universities soon, which are closed due to pandemic.

"There are no plans to start physical classes in colleges and universities. Syllabus provided will be shortened. More focus will be given on online classes. We are even thinking of taking 1st-semester exams online," Chatterjee said.

Education institutions have been closed across the country since March after the coronavirus outbreak. However, in October, the Union Ministry of Education had issued guidelines for reopening of schools.

West Bengal reported 3,367 new COVID-19 cases and 54 deaths on Sunday. The total cases in the state reached 4,80,813 including 24,405 active cases and 4,48,032 recoveries while the death toll climbed to 8,376.