The Odisha government on Thursday announced resumption of offline classes for Class VIII and above from February 7 and lower classes from February 14 in view of improvement in the COVID-19 situation in the State.
Classes I to V are going to reopen after a gap of two years in the State. In view of the Omicron-fuelled third wave, the government had shut down Classes V and above a month ago.
“In the past one month, the situation has come under control with Omicron variant infections being less severe, requiring less hospitalisation. We have already crossed the peak of the third wave and the test positivity rate is also low,” said Suresh Chandra Mohapatra, State Chief Secretary, announcing the reopening of schools here.
“Meanwhile, we have also vaccinated children aged between 15 and 18 on a large scale. People from all walks of life had been demanding the resumption of physical classes. In the larger interest of students, the decision to reopen educational institutions has been taken,” said Mr. Mohapatra.
Hostels to open doors
From February 7, the attached schools and hostels of Classes VIII and above would start functioning normally. The short-term training, which was part of educational institutes, would also resume.
A week after, Classes I to VII would be reopened. During the current academic session, students could opt classes either on physical or hybrid mode.
All departments have been instructed to issue standard operating procedures for the opening of their respective educational institutes.
Exams for promotion
Examinations would be held for promotion for Classes I to IX. Similarly, Class XI students would appear for examinations for promotion. Promotion would be decided on the basis of classroom assessment.
Boards concerned would issue examination guidelines for Classes X and XII.
Institutes falling under the Higher Education Department would conduct examinations as per the pre-January 10 guidelines. Schools and colleges have been instructed to follow COVID-19 guidelines.
