About 22 per cent of students turned up on the first day of the reopening of schools in Telangana on Wednesday as schools and colleges, barring residential government institutions, resumed offline classes with COVID-19 protocols in place. Out of the total 52,22,174 students enrolled in the government and private sector, only 11,37,095 students attended the schools, registering 21.77 per cent attendance, official sources said.

The resumption of classes followed a High Court Order on Tuesday, granting schools permission to do so while staying government residential schools from holding offline classes for four weeks. The Court also directed that no child in any class be compelled by school managements to physically attend offline classes if parents were not inclined to send them.

On Wednesday, students streamed into schools wearing masks, used the hand sanitizers provided, and attended classes. Education Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy, who inspected a school in the city, said students should be told specifically during morning prayers about the need to follow COVID-19 norms. Teachers and other staff should also take precautions at the time of mid-day meals, she said.

More care should be taken about school children as college students are expected to have better awareness, she said. Out of 60 lakh children from 1st to 12th standard in the state, about 29 to 30 lakh students are in government institutions, she said. Meanwhile, Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan visited the high school at Raj Bhavan here and interacted with students, teachers and parents, and officials.

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