After CM’s Review Meeting, Fresh Guidelines Issued for Schools; Wearing Mask Mandatory for Students

Bhubaneswar: The School and Mass Education Department today issued fresh guidelines for schools after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s review meeting on Covid-19 management.

The Chief Minister directed officials to ensure schools in the State follow these instructions.

a) The students coming to school must wear mask and the teachers should ensure it. In case any student has come to school without mask, the school administration should not allow the students to enter into the school premises.

b) The expenditure incurred for Covid management should be met out of school improvement grant released from OSEPA.

c) At the entry point, thermal screening of all the students coming to attend offline classes must be ensured and hand sanitisation should also be done.

d) Social distancing inside the class room should be meticulously followed and the Covid Monitor should be extra vigilant to ensure it.

e) Any student, teacher or non-teaching staff having mild symptom like cold, sneezing and fever should not be allowed to enter into the school.

f) The SMC or SMDC must be sensitized time and again with the local PRI members about Covid-19 and their role in sensitizing the school going children through their parents.

g) The BRCCs or CRCCs should be tagged with school for periodical visit and ensure that all stakeholders are following Covid appropriate behavior.

h) The local administration including health administration should be updated in case of any major development which affects the online teaching.

i) As usual both online and offline teaching will continue and no students should be forced to come to school. Attendance in offline class is not mandatory.

j) The nodal officers of the respective districts will be in touch the DEOs and the respective Directors should be intimated on daily basis about the attendance and the same should be sent through WhatsApp in the SME group by 2 PM.

k) OSEPA control room set up at headquarter will monitor these instructions on daily basis.
The schools in Odisha have been reopened for Class X and XII from July 26, 2021 and for Class IX from August 16, 2021..