Schools reopen for Classes 9, 10 in Maharashtra's Aurangabad despite two teachers testing positive

Schools reopened for Classes 9 and 10 in Maharashtra's Aurangabad district on Monday, even as two teachers have tested positive for Coronavirus, a civic official said.

There was a good response from students in the civic-run schools on the first day, the official said, adding that the exact number of students who attended the classes will be known by evening.

While permitting the reopening of schools for Classes 9 and 10, which have been shut since March last year following the outbreak of COVID-19, the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation has made coronavirus test mandatory for teachers.

From December 28 till January 3, 1,358 teachers and other staff of various schools underwent RT-PCR tests. Out of them, two teachers and one staff member have so far tested positive for coronavirus, the official said. When contacted, the civic body's education officer Ramnath Thore told PTI that they have received good response from students.

"However, some students were sent back home as they didn't have the consent of their parents. The students are enthusiastic about coming back to school and we will surely see a rise in the number in the coming days," he said.

Ajay Nilangekar, a senior teacher from a private school here, said students came to attend classes in good numbers in the morning.

"We have almost one-third strength on the first day. The classes will take place for four hours every day. Sanitisation of the premises is done before the school starts and will be done again after the classes are over," he said.

Aparna Jabras, the mother of a Class 9 student who is currently attending online classes, said she will wait and watch before taking a decision on whether to send her son to school or not.

"As going to school is optional, my son can attend the classes online," she said. Anagha Vasekar, whose son is also studying in Class 9 in another private school here, said, "I am ready to send my son to school. The studies have already been hampered a lot, hence I will send him to school."

Till Sunday, the COVID-19 tally in Aurangabad was 45,762, while 1,206 people have so far died due to the disease, as per official figures.