A fresh advisory for schools in the national capital has been issued by the Delhi government which directs the former to close the entire premises or specific wings temporarily if any student or staff tests positive for COVID-19.
The Directorate of Education (DOE) stated that students and staff should follow COVID-19 precautions such as wearing masks and maintaining social distance as much as possible, stated a report in PTI.
It was on April 13 when the advisory came, amid reports of a few students who tested positive for COVID-19 across Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR).
"If any COVID case is noticed or reported to the school authority the same must be intimated to the Directorate of Education immediately and the concerned wing of the school or the school as a whole as the case may be, must be closed down for time being," the advisory said, as mentioned in a report by PTI.
It mentioned regular washing of hands, using sanitisers and creating awareness on the prevention of COVID-19 among students, teachers and other supporting staff and parents visiting the school.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia stated that he had directed the education department to issue guidelines on Friday, regarding the slight rise in the COVID-19 cases.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia stated that the government is closely monitoring the situation and urged the people to not panic as there is no rise in hospitalisation.
"COVID cases have slightly increased but there is no rise in hospitalisation, so we need not worry. There is no need to panic but (we have to) stay alert. We have to learn to live with COVID. We are constantly monitoring the situation," Sisodia told reporters.
However, he did not specify the name of the school where cases have been reported.
The new cases were reported in schools adjoining Noida and Ghaziabad, whereas, in Delhi, fresh infections were reported in private schools.
In the last week, five students and a staff member from a top private school in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj had tested positive which triggered concerns among the parents regarding their wards' safety as well as the possible closure of schools yet again.
A section of parents alleged that the school did not inform them about the positive cases which were reported, raising concerns about children going to classes along with COVID-19 positive students and the imminent closure of schools yet again. The school denied these allegations.
"As students across Delhi-NCR turn COVID positive, schools are struggling with protocols. My child's school has at least eight kids, two staff members positive. But no proper information is given to parents. The school is functioning normally, including even those classes with positive cases," said a parent.
A school management representative said, "The parents of students of each class where a student had tested positive were informed on the class WhatsApp group to take all COVID-19 precautions."
Holidays for four days were given to the schools in Delhi which began from Thursday on account of Ambedkar Jayanti, Good Friday followed by the weekend.
With the rise in cases, the Delhi BJP demanded that the government should, once again, make the wearing of masks mandatory in public places including public transport, schools, colleges and so on.
In view of the uptick in COVID cases, the government officials stated that the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) will hold a meeting on April 20 and may consider bringing back the precaution of mandatory wearing of the mask.
