Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Friday questioned the re-opening of schools in the state and inquired as to whether schools will reopen on January 31. The advocate general informed the court by saying that the government had made no decision regarding the reopening of schools.
The court, which heard several petitions, also questioned the government on the steps taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at weekend markets and the arrangements made for the Samakka-Saralamma jatara.
Meanwhile, Dr G Srinivas Rao, director of public health who attended the court hearing virtually told the court that around 3.45 lakh isolation kits were handed over to the people by visiting 77 lakh houses during the fever survey. Rao also said that the positivity rate in the state was at 3.16 per cent.
When asked about children’s medicine in isolation kits, Srinivas Rao responded that children’s medicine should not be administered directly through the kits and should be given separately. The court, however, requested a full report on it and delayed the case until February 3.
Recommendations of the Health department
Earlier in the day, the Telangana Department of Health in its report urged the government to keep the educational institution shut for another 10 days in view of the omicron variant’s likely surge during the next 10 days, especially in the South Indian states.
The health department officials told the department of Education not to issue the directive for the opening of the schools which may lead to crowding.
On its end, the department of education is reviewing these recommendations and the officials said that whatever the state government decides in this regard will be accepted. However, it is worth noting that the education department is under pressure from the educational institutions to open the schools. Several states where strict restrictions are in place are taking steps to open up educational institutions.
The department of health wants the school to remain shut for another week after Jan 30. However, the officials of the Department of Education say that continuous closure of educational institutions may adversely impact the children’s education which cannot be permitted.
The department of education is currently in consultation with experts regarding the safety guidelines to appraise the state government about its stand.