The State School and Mass Education Department, Odisha is planning to continue teaching lessons via YouTube videos. The video-based platform can offer students the flexibility to take recorded lessons classes as per the availability of connection.

The announcement came soon after a student from Rayagada district died while searching the network for online classes. The deceased has been identified as Andriya Jagaranga from Pandraguda village under the Padmapur block of Rayagada district. Andriya was a student of Cuttack Missionary School. He was regularly attending online classes at home during the Covid-19 period, however, his mobile phone had no signal on Tuesday and went climbing atop the mountain near his village in search of a signal to be able to attend the online class.

Unfortunately, he slipped and fell down, receiving serious injuries. Locals rushed him to Padmapur medical in a serious condition, while he was shifting to MKCG Medical, Berhampur died on the way. A local teacher Bijay Choudhury said mobile network is a major problem in the district and many students are unable to attend classes. In the villages, students are seen sitting on the roofs, trees and hills of their locality to study online classes.

Even though school and college are partially open, the attendance of children is low in Odisha amid fear of the third wave of COVID-19 virus and lack of vaccine for children.

The YouTube classes are expected to begin on August 23. The department had adopted YouTube Live classes earlier as well. “Even if the school closes, it will not be closed,” said State School and Mass Education Minister Samir Ranjan Das.

YouTube Live Classes will be held five days a week from Monday to Friday. It will start at 9:30 a.m. and run until 1.30 p.m. There will be five periods a day. Science, commerce, art, and business are divided on that basis. Students can take lessons during live classes, or they can be read later because these classes are recorded, School and Mass Education Minister Samir Ranjan Dash informed.

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