The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 issued new guidelines for reopening of schools, colleges and educational institutions after October 15.  The MHA stated, “For re-opening of schools and coaching institutions, State/ UT Governments have been given the flexibility to take a decision after 15th October 2020, in a graded manner. The decision shall be taken in consultation with the respective school/ institution management, based on their assessment of the situation.”

A survey conducted by LocalCircles following the issuing of Unlock 5 guidelines revealed that that about 71 percent parents do not want their kids to attend school as coronavirus cases continue to rise unabated. 

The survey was conducted in 217 districts of the country with 61 percent parents from Tier 1 districts, 21 percent from Tier 2 districts and 18 percent from Tier 3, Tier 4 and rural districts. It revealed that the percentage of parents willing to send their children to school has dropped from 23 percent to 20 percent from August. Of the total, only 28 percent, parents want the schools to reopen in 2020, while 34 percent feel they should reopen in the next academic year.

71 percent respondents said ‘no’ to sending children back to schools in October while only 20 percent said ‘yes’ and 9 percent were unsure about it.

Respondents were also asked what their position was regarding the opening of schools in India. In response, 32 percent said schools should not open till Dec 31, 2020, 34 percent said the government should not open schools for this academic year, that is, till March/April 2021. While, 7 percent said schools should open from October 1, and 12 percent said schools should open from November 1, 2020 and 9 percent said schools should open from December 1, 2020.

Source: News18

Read: School reopening status and MHA guidelines

Also read: Delhi: Schools to remain closed till October 31

Also read: CBSE board exam 2021: Attendance relaxation for classes 10, 12 students