- Tanu Bulo, NET correspondent, Arunachal Pradesh
Few days after offline classes resumed in Blue Pine Residential English School, Hapoli, cases of COVID-19 were reported on 16 September forcing the authorities to declare the school as a Micro-Containment Zone and the adjoining areas as Buffer Zone with immediate effect. The containment order was issued by the office of District Magistrate, Lower Subansiri district as per the report submitted by District Medical Officer.
The Magistrate, Somcha Lowang has also issued a directive for strict compliance of Standards of Procedures (SOPs).
The containment order shall remain in force until further notice. Any violation shall be prosecuted under appropriate sections of DM Act 2005 and section 188 of IPC.
The Government of Arunachal Pradesh had allowed the re-opening of all educational institutions from Class 1 onwards for offline classes from 13 September via a circular dated 10th September. The Institutes were advised to strictly adhere to SOPs.
Meanwhile, several students and their parents have raised concerns over the non-compliance of SOPs in educational institutions. With several experts pointing out that 3rd wave of the pandemic is likely to hit children the most, the fear among children and their parents is not unfounded.
