Classes will be suspended if cases cross 100: Assam minister
Assam Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said that Deputy Commissioners have been authorized to suspend physical classes up to Class 8 in districts where COVID-19 cases have crossed 100 on a particular day. Physical classroom assembly of students of Class 6 to 8 in both private and public schools will be suspended in districts, the minister said at a press conference.
Earlier notification allowed suspension of classes upto Class 5
Online classes will, however, be made available, he added. The state Education Department had earlier issued a notification authorizing Deputy Commissioners to suspend classes in primary schools till Class 5 where cases exceed 100 on a particular date. The minister said that with cases in Kamrup Metro exceeding 1,000, it is advised to shut down all educational institutions including hostels for 15 days.
All educational institutions already shut down in Kamrup Metro district
Deputy Commissioner Biswajit Pegu has already issued the order to shut down all educational institutions in Kamrup Metro district where 1,153 cases were reported on Monday. All other districts, where the numbers reach a threshold that require such measures, shall follow suit, Sarma said.
HS final examinations for AHSEC subjects postponed until further notice
Meanwhile, the Cotton College State University had on Monday postponed the higher secondary (HS) final (Practical) examinations for all subjects of Assam Higher Secondary Educational Council (AHSEC) until further notice. In a notification issued on Monday, the examination department of the varsity said that the remaining examinations will be scheduled when the situation becomes normal and will be notified in due course.
Ongoing UG examinations also suspended due to rising COVID-19 cases
The university has also suspended the ongoing undergraduate (UG) first semester examinations including BA Liberal Arts from Monday due to rising COVID-19 cases. The remaining examination will be scheduled when the situation becomes normal and will be notified in due course, the notification added.
Assam will double the session sites for COVID-19 vaccination
Meanwhile, Assam will double the number of session sites for COVID-19 vaccination as the state faces a huge challenge to vaccinate about 1.6 crore people between 18 and 45 years after their online registration. This comes as the caseload in the state continued to surge, with 1,844 more testing positive on Sunday, while the daily positivity rate surged to 5.48%.
