Schools and colleges were closed due to Covid-19 lockdown for almost a year and a half in Valparai.
Coimbatore: Breaking away from long online class schedules, students of Classes 9 to 12 across Tamil Nadu heaved a huge sigh of relief as they made a beeline for their respective school and college campuses.
For almost a year and a half, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, educational institutions had to shut down their campuses and conduct online classes for students of all schools and colleges across Tamil Nadu. With fresh Covid cases on the decline, the Ministry of Education in Tamil Nadu announced that schools will be reopened on September 1 and in keeping with the order, students thronged campuses on Wednesday.
Schools and colleges in Valparai too reopened on Wednesday. The Valparai Boys' High School which has about 720 students studying in Classes 9 to 12, had 600 students thronging the school campus on the very first day. Teachers who were at school at 8.30 am checked the body temperature of students, ensured all students had their hands sanitized, wore face masks and then allowed them into the classes.
Teachers recorded the attendance of students and welcomed the students to school, while also instructing them to follow Covid-19 prevention guidelines laid down by the Tamil Nadu Government.
Only two students were allowed to sit on a bench, in adherence to social distancing. Valparai Men's High School campus was sprayed with disinfectants on Tuesday and all classes were cleaned and disinfected for the reopening.
Valparai Undergraduate Government College in Cinchona Estate area also reopened on Wednesday while the post-graduate college in Valparai did not reopen since it was still functioning as a Covid-19 treatment centre. Staff in these colleges were also involved in checking the body temperature of students, ensuring that all students had their hands sanitized along with strict adherence to social distancing.