As the Coronavirus situation worsens across the country owing to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, on December 31, announced precautionary measures on the state education institutions. Schools across the state can no longer hold in-person lessons for Classes 1 to 8 till January 10 and henceforth all in-person lectures for Class 9 and above will be held at a 50 per cent capacity.
Moreover, in-person classes have been put on hold indefinitely for playschool and kindergarten students. It is noteworthy that there are precautionary measures announced for the general public as well. All exhibitions and book fairs [including Chennai Book Fair] would be postponed, the Chief Minister said. For those who depend on the government transport system for daily commutation to colleges and offices, authorities have decided to not allow standees and only 50 per cent of passengers are allowed in Chennai Metro Rail.
There are a series of restrictions in place for businesses as well. Only 50 per cent of customers would be allowed in restaurants, bakeries and dormitories. The same is applicable for entertainment parks and amusement parks. In the case of personal functions and get-togethers, only 100 guests would be permitted to attend weddings and related events. There is more, only a maximum of 50 people can attend funerals.
The announcement comes after Stalin chaired a meeting at the Secretariat earlier in the day to review the COVID-19 situation and the spread of the Omicron variant. Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi and Health Minister Ma Subramanian among others along with some senior officials were present in this meeting.
