Staff Reporter
Peshawar
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Labour Shaukat Yousafzai Wednesday warned that strict action would be taken against those found to be violating the government’s standard operating procedures (SOPs) in schools for curbing the spread of the coronavirus among students. Talking to media, he called upon the parents as well as school administration to play their active role in creating awareness among students about the Covid-19 precautionary measures otherwise government will take strict administrative actions for the implementation of the SOPs.
He asserted that the government will take care to ensure that student health at any cost, adding, the staff members will be required to observe all laid down SOPs issued by the government. A circular containing these guidelines were already issued by the ministry of education and health, he said, adding, heads of schools have also been directed to convene a meeting with management committees of their respective schools and colleges to take the community and parents on board.
He said school heads have also been strictly instructed to hold a comprehensive meeting with their teachers to design strategies to assess the learning abilities of their students once they return. There would never be any compromise on the implementation of SOPs in schools as government is seriously concerned with the health of students, he added
He said health and education ministry would randomly check and monitor the government given SOPs, and I am hopeful that if we begin taking precautionary measures from here on out, we can avoid a difficult situation. ‘No one would be allowed to play with lives of children,’ he mentioned. Replying a question, he said explained classes nine and up would open on September 15 in the first phase, and a week later, on September 21, classes six through eight would open, and a week after that, which is September 28, the pre-classes up to five will be opened primary, ‘he said in a statement.
Masks would be mandatory in all schools, he said, adding that all schools would have to follow standard operating procedures. He said small classes would be divided in different groups in order to avoid rush of students in classrooms. Minister also said the education and health departments together would conduct Covid-19 random tests at the camps each day. He also asked parents to ensure that the children wear face masks as students without masks won’t be allowed to enter the schools as a precautionary measure against coronavirus.
