'We welcome all students': Schools reopen after 19 months

From tiny tots to junior wing students, children in Delhi were excited to be back in schools on Monday after a prolonged closure of over 19 months due to COVID-19 pandemic.

While several schools reopened with 50 per cent seating capacity on Monday, majority of private schools have deferred the reopening to post Diwali.

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Masked students, thermal scanning, and volunteers guiding staggered entry and exit for students was a common sight at the schools which reopened on Monday.

Meanwhile, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia visited the Rajkiya Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in east Delhi's Vinod Nagar and interacted with students.

"Finally!! It's time to come back to school. Today children have returned to schools after almost one and half year. It was an emotional movement to see students laughing and enjoying in classrooms. We welcome all students back to school," Sisodia tweeted.

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The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) had last week announced that schools would reopen for all classes from November 1, even though teaching and learning would continue in blended mode.

The DDMA had also said that schools would have to ensure that there is not more than 50 per cent attendance in a class at one point of time and no student is forced to attend physical classes.

Following a marked improvement in the COVID-19 situation in the national capital, the Delhi government had announced the reopening of schools for classes 9 to 12, colleges and coaching institutions from September 1.

However, this is the first time after March 2020 that schools in Delhi are reopening for classes upto 8.

Physical classes for standards 1-8 also resumed in Tamil Nadu on Monday as children were accorded a warm, traditional welcome with Chief Minister M K Stalin leading from the front.

Stalin, who had earlier called for a cordial welcome for the returning children, visited a Chennai Corporation-run institution at Guindy here and distributed education kits and sweets to the wards. 

Across the state, schools reopened for offline classes for the first time in over a year and a half for the students of classes I-VIII, with enthusiastic children being greeted by, in some places, the traditional Tamil reception involving Nagaswaram-Thavil instruments, used during auspicious occasions including weddings.