West Bengal: Schools to reopen after puja vacations
CM Mamata Bannerjee announces to reopen schools after puja vacations if situation is favourable.
On Monday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that schools in the state will be reopened after the puja vacations, provided the Covid-19 situation does not change for worse.
She said, "Schools in Bengal will reopen after the puja (vacations), provided the situation is favourable. If the third wave does not turn out to be dangerous, we will sanitise the school buildings and reopen them. We are keen on restarting schools. We want students to go to schools." The chief minister further clarified, "if the number of cases spikes, as it did in Maharashtra and Kerala, I am not sure what decisions would be taken then."
Earlier, following a meeting of the Global Advisory Board (GAB), headed by Nobel laureate Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee, the CM had hinted that the state government is looking to open the schools and colleges on alternate days after the puja vacation.
On Sunday, during a webinar, Nobel laureate, Amartya Sen said, "there is no instant answer to the debate over the opening of school campuses amid the Covid-19 pandemic." He further added, "children are suffering a lot as schools remain closed but concerns over their health cannot be ignored. Educational institutes in Bengal have largely remained shut since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country in March last year."
