Pune: Schools in parts of Pune city reopened on Monday after a big break of nine months due to the coronavirus crisis. However, the tepid response on the first day has stressed that parents are still doubtful about sending their children to attend classes physically.
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) had earlier decided to reopen schools from January 4 for class 9 to 12. Monday witnessed a low response of resumption of schools due to multiple reasons.
Regardless of the state government declaring days before, the administration was yet to complete inspection of schools and dispersed last minute surveys on sanitisation, which led to a delay in consent. The local body didn’t allow some schools to resume because COVID-19 negative test reports of teachers were still pending. There are several high schools running in civic body limits but local authorities shared a list of only 66 schools which reopened on Monday.
Many parents also stated that they were waiting for the change in the decision of resumption of schools. Several students who packed their bags and stepped-out to visit schools were disappointed. After their school remained shut, many returned home in no time.
While sanitisation actions stepped up and social distancing norms worked out, school authorities were worried about the distribution of the workforce. Also, only a few parents gave nod to send pupils to the school.