Delhi has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases in India (Representational)
Schools in Delhi will remain closed till July 31, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said after a meeting with education department officials today. The move is in line with safety precautions that need to be taken as coronavirus cases continue to rise in the national capital - Delhi has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases in India.
One of the key proposals discussed today was to cut syllabus up to 50 per cent, the Delhi government said in a statement. The officials agreed that online classes and activities with the help of parents should continue in the meantime.
"Let's design a plan to reopen schools in a way that would prepare our students to adjust to the new circumstances and not fear them. It would help our students to learn to live with coronavirus," Mr Sisodia said.
For Class 9 and 10, the officials asked Mr Sisodia to allow classes in small groups once or twice a week. Other officials, however, recommended that Class 10 students should attend classes everyday.
They unanimously agreed that wherever possible schools should open online libraries.
The Delhi government had invited suggestions from parents on how to go about reopening schools after the centre earlier this month announced its "Unlock1" guidelines.
"One of the suggestions in the meeting was that primary classes should be held once or twice in a week with a strength of 12-15 students in a class. Another point was made that classes can be conducted on alternate days for students of classes 3 to 5," the government said in the statement.
The safety measures that schools should take include classroom sanitisation, giving masks to students and thermal screening at school gates, among others.
The officials recommended that classes could be held once or twice a week for students of Class 6 to 8.
Classes for 11th and 12th standard students could be conducted on alternate days and the rest of the days can be taught through online classes, according to the recommendations.
Delhi reported 3,390 fresh coronavirus cases today, taking the tally in the city to 73,780. With 64 deaths linked to the highly contagious virus over the past 24 hours, the fatalities in the national capital stood at 2,429, government data shows.