Thane: Schools in rural areas of Thane district will not reopen for classes 1 to 4 from tomorrow, December 1, as a precautionary measure against the back drop of new COVID19 variant 'Omicron'.
District Collector Vaidehi Ranade has ordered to start all the schools for class 1 to 4 from December 15 instead of December 1.
Amid concerns over the new COVID-19 variant 'Omicron', the reopening of schools from classes 1 to 7 has been postponed by 10-15 days in Mumbai, Pune, Nashik and Navi Mumbai.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Schools reopening has been delayed. As per recent orders from BMC, Mumbai Schools will not be reopening from tomorrow - December 1, 2021 for classes 1 to 7. They would reopen from December 15, 2021, once the situation is conducive. The decision has been taken as the threat and fear of new COVID variant, Omicron is now spreading among people. Taking into account the safety of everyone and the need to adopt utmost care, the reopening date has been deferred for junior classes in Mumbai Schools.
Maharashtra Government had earlier given a nod to reopen schools for physical classes from December 1, 2021. On November 29, 2021, the guidelines and SOPs for the same were also released and the State School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad asked everyone to follow them.
Amid the guidelines issued for the reopening of schools, the Maharashtra government had announced that physical classes were held only for 3-4 hours a day. Schools were asked to work in shifts or on alternate days as the case may be to ensure only 15-20 students are present in class at a given time.
As of now, no Omicron cases have been reported in India. Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan will hold a review meeting with States on the Omicron variant of COVID19 today.
