Implementation of COVID-19 SOPs in schools may not be easy: Saeed Ghani

A day after the government decided to reopen schools, Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani on Tuesday said that initially there might be difficulties in implementing the COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) at the educational institutions.

Speaking on media, the provincial minister noted that all decisions were taken in consultation with the Education Steering Committee and stressed that the devised strategies would only bear fruits if everyone plays their part.

Saeed Ghani said the authorities have issued preventive measures for not only children but their parents and other caretakers as well who are equally responsible for ensuring the well-being of schoolgoing children.

"It is not possible to keep an individual check and balance. People are expected to be vigilant and to contribute in battling out the contagion," he added. Noting that the decision to reopen schools can be reviewed if there is a resurgence of virus cases, Ghani said that preventive measures are also devised for school vans.

He further said that the reopening all the educational institutions at once would have made it difficult to implement SOPs, therefore, in the first phase, the authorities will assess the situation after a week and consider whether classes should be reopened for junior classes or not.

Meanwhile, Punjab Education Minister Murad Raas said that the decision to reopen schools was taken after a thorough review of the situation. "[Standard operating procedures] sops in schools will be closely monitored, whereas, only 50% of children will come to schools in one day [in order to maintain social distancing among pupils]," he added.

Talking about social distancing and implementation of SOPs, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Labour Minister Shaukat Yousufzai said that the children will be divided into groups to avoid the rush in classes.

He said that the authorities will not turn their eyes away after reopening schools but will monitor strictly to ensure the implementation of the precautionary measures.

"Children will have to wear masks in schools, whereas, sick children will not be allowed to attend classes," he added.

Additionally, the Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani said that the phase-wise reopening of schools can be challenging especially for the primary school children. "If the coronavirus cases escalate after reopening of schools, the government will decide the next course of action accordingly," Shahwani added.