Educational Institutes to Remain Closed Until 30 September; Students may Visit on Voluntary Basis from 21 September

On 29 August, the Union Home Ministry issued guidelines for the fourth stage of removing the lockdown. According to the guidelines, educational institutions will remain closed for regular classes until 30 September. However, students can volunteer to go to classes from 21 September onwards.

The government stated that it would be imprudent to allow educational institutions to function with the virus still not under control. The ministry of health and family welfare will issue guidelines regarding Standard Operating Procedures soon.

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Students studying in classes 9 to 12 may go to schools voluntarily, subject to the written consent of their parents, provided their schools are in areas which are not containment zones. They may do so from 21 September onwards.

Research scholars and postgraduate students involved in technical and professional courses who require access to laboratory facilities can also go to their institutes from 21 September onwards. Skill schools and entrepreneurship institutes may also be allowed to function from the same date.

Digital and distance learning are to be encouraged. States and union territories will be allowed to permit up to 50 percent of the total strength of teachers and other staff in schools, in order to attend to online teaching and tele-counselling work. This will only be allowed in non-containment zones, starting from 21 September.

Educational institutions in India have been closed since the middle of March due to the pandemic. The country now faces a huge hurdle in reopening them amid the pandemic. Schools and colleges cannot be closed for long as it may affect the standards of education and the academic future of almost 290 million students.