Schools in Pune will suspend offline teaching for Class 1 to 8 with immediate effect considering the spread of Covid-19 in the city and surrounding areas, Deputy Chief Minister and Guardian Minister for Pune District Ajit Pawar announced on Tuesday.
Pawar said offline classes for Class 9 and above will continue as students in the age bracket are now eligible to receive vaccination.
“After prolonged discussions with officials of PMC (Pune Municipal Corporation), PCMC (Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation), and the district administration, we have decided to shut the schools for physical classes for Standard 1 to Standard 8,” said Pawar. “State Health Minister Rajesh Tope has consulted with ICMR (Indian Council for Medical Research) Director General Balram Bhargav who advised us to go ahead with the move in case positivity rate crosses 10 per cent. In Pune, the positivity rate is about 18 per cent now,” said Pawar.
Pawar said Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will chair a meeting on Wednesday morning where statewide decisions about school operations among other issues will be taken.