TIRUNELVELI
Collector V. Vishnu chaired a meeting here on Monday to check the preparations put in place in schools as per the standard operating procedure framed by the Department of Public Health as the classes for the SSLC and the Plus Two students are to start from Tuesday.
Chairing the meeting held at the Collectorate on Monday to review the preparations ahead of the reopening of schools after a gap of ten months, Mr. Vishnu said teachers and the students of all 312 government and the government-aided high and the higher secondary schools should wear masks, sanitize their hands and their body temperature measured with thermal scanners before entering the classes. There should be no assembly or prayer meeting before the start of the class and no cultural events on the school premises should be allowed. Swimming pool, if any, in the school, should not be used.
Biometric attendance system should not be allowed. Each classroom should not have more than 25 students to ensure physical distancing and the vitamin and zinc tablets supplied to the schools should be given to the students to boost their immunity.
“The toilets, classrooms, hostels and the kitchen should have been disinfected by the local bodies concerned and maintained properly. The heads of schools should have the contact phone numbers of nearest government hospital or primary health centre in case of any medical emergency. Above all, teachers should not compel the students to come to the school,” Mr. Vishnu said.
An official in the rank of Deputy Collector will visit the schools to check if the standard operating procedure framed by the government were being followed.
Assistant Collector (Training) Alarmel Mangai, Corporation Commissioner G. Kannan, Deputy Director of Public Health Varadharajan, Project Director, District Rural Development Agency Manthrachalam and others participated in the review meeting.
In Thoothukudi, 4.58 lakh zinc tablets and 4.58 lakh multi-vitamin tablets have been handed over to the heads of 328 high and the higher secondary schools so that the tablets can be distributed to the students on Tuesday.
“Since some of the schools are facing rainwater stagnation problem, those schools have been given exemption from starting classes from Tuesday. After this problem is sorted out they can reopen the schools,” Collector K. Senthil Raj said.
