Schools in J&K reopen with a few students amid COVID-19 scare
   Date :22-Sep-2020

Schools in J nd K reopen
 Students walk to attend their classes at a school in Srinagar on Monday after schools across Kashmir partially reopened after a gap of more than six months due to outbreak of COVID-19. (PTI)
 
 
JAMMU :
 
ONLY a few students turned up to attend special classes in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday as schools for higher classes reopened after a gap of over six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the union territory administration said. Principal Secretary, School Education and Skill Development, Asgar Hassan Samoon said, the reopening of schools was not meant for regular classes.
 
“I was on a visit to Reasi district and only five to seven students were present in different schools and attending the special meetings with their teachers meant to clear their doubts,” Director School Education, Jammu, Anuradha Gupta told PTI. She said the school management has been directed to devise a mechanism to ensure the students make the best of the opportunity and come out with a roster to fulfill the requirement of the students.
 
The decision of the government to reopen the schools came under sharp criticism from opposition parties, including the National Conference and the Congress, who questioned the rationale behind the opening of school from classes 9 to 12 amid the pandemic.
 
As on Sunday evening, Jammu and Kashmir had recorded 1,001 COVID-related deaths – 769 in Kashmir and 232 in Jammu regions. The UT’s caseload was 63,990, of which 41,087 cases were reported in Kashmir and 22,903 in Jammu region.