Outbreak now under control but keep guard up: Kejriwal
NEWDELHI: The Covid-19 situation in the Capital was on a worrying trajectory until a few weeks ago but a concerted effort helped turn the situation around, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Wednesday, cautioning people that the outbreak could spike again if they become complacent.
“Today, I am happy that we have waded through the tough times we had seen at the beginning of June. Our hard work has paid off. Today, only around 26,000 active cases are there in Delhi against our projection of 60,000 cases. This projection was made based on a portal created by the government of India,” he added. Kejriwal also pointed to other data points such as availability of beds and recovery rate to back his statement.
Delhi ended Wednesday with 89,802 cases, out of which 27,007 are active. It has so far seen 2,803
deaths, and 59,992 people have recovered from the coronavirus disease.
In a digital press conference, Kejriwal steered clear of claiming the worst of the pandemic is behind -- as indicated by last week’s numbers -- and instead urged people to strictly follow the only regimen known to prevent
infections: wearing masks, maintaining hygiene, and distancing socially. Delhi saw a peak of 3,947 cases on June 23, but the number has come down steadily since then despite the number of tests increasing. In the days since the city has seen, 3,788, 3,390, 3,460, 2,948, 2,889, 2,084, 2,199, and 2,442 cases.
GURUGRAM: The state education department on Wednesday declared summer vacations for both government and private schools from July 1 till July 26 but with the caveat that distancelearning programmes and online classes would continue as usual -leaving teachers confused and unhappy at the ambiguity of the decision.
Schools will reopen only for teachers and administrative staff on July 27.
Department officials said private schools could continue with online classes as usual during this period. Most private schools in the city had already declared vacation for a varying number of days between April and June in view of the Covid pandemic.
The state government usually declares vacations in May-June every year. Government schools have been holding online classes since the first week of April due to the Covid pandemic. The state launched an e-learning campaign ‘Ghar se Padhao’ formally on April 14. Private school followed their own trajectory with some of them starting online classes in March itself.
Indu Boken, district education officer, said declaration of the summer break was essentially a relaxation for government schools teachers, who had been reporting to work physically since last month.
“School teachers and administration workers had been reporting to work so far. The declaration of summer vacations simply means they will not be required to visit schools during the specified period. Everything else including online classes will continue as before. The break will benefit staff members, especially at a time when cases in Gurugram are at an all-time high,” Boken said.
The officer said schools will reopen only for teachers and staff after the vacation. “Physical classes for children will not start from July 27. The status quo remains as of now,” said Boken.
Government school teachers who have been taking online classes since April said they were dumbfounded by the twin orders issued by the department on Wednesday.
The government had initially issued an order declaring the onset of vacations, which was followed by another order clarifying that online classes would continue during the break.
Teachers said the declaration of vacations was perfunctory at best and they had only been given a reprieve from physical visits to schools and not a break, as was being claimed. School heads and teachers have been asked to monitor online classes from home and submit a report as before.
“We were under the impression that vacations had been declared for the benefit of teachers who were offering online classes since April. However, we have been asked to continue teaching as before. We are only getting a reprieve from physically visiting the schools. It is misleading to say that we will be on a break,” said a government school teacher who did not wish to be named.
Another teacher, on condition of anonymity, said children were exhausted due to online classes and needed a break. “With easing of restrictions during the unlocking process and people resuming work, many children don’t have access to mobile phones during most part of the day. Some of them are going back to their native villages for a break. An actual break from classes would have helped these students,” said the teacher.
Private school representatives said they were yet to receive any order through government channels. “We are yet to receive the order from official channels. So far, the understanding is that the order applies only to government schools. It doesn’t mention private schools specifically,” said Aditi Misra, principal, Delhi Public School, Sector 45. Boken said private schools could continue with online classes as usual.
Parents are not happy with the decision. Kailash Sharma, general secretary of the Haryana Abhibhavak Ekta Manch, a parents’ body, said the summer vacation order was irrational and did not offer any relief to students who had been taking online classes for over three months now.
“The government doesn’t understand that we are living through unprecedented circumstances. Students are already exhausted with online classes. They desperately need a break but by continuing online classes. The government is redefining the meaning of vacation,” said Sharma.
Dayanand Singh Dalal, state president, Haryana School Lecturers Association, said the government failed to take cognisance of the interests of students and teachers who were stressed and were in need of a break.
“Besides taking online classes, teachers have been actively involved in dispersal of mid-day meals and other requirements since the lockdown was first imposed. Students are stressed too, especially those who don’t have access to mobile phones. The government should have called off online classes and given time for revision instead,” said Dalal.