Tamil Nadu reopens nursery schools; Masks not mandatory

Amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapidly increasing number of cases, the state government ordered the closure of schools in March 2020.

TN School Reopening: Tamil Nadu government has allowed the reopening of nursery schools across the state after a gap of two years. The decision has been taken considering the declining numbers of novel coronavirus cases. The government has also insisted that face masks are not mandatory for kindergarten children.

Reports suggest that children at various schools received a warm welcome from teachers with balloons, chocolates and flowers on day one to help them cope up with a new environment. Several schools which have been conducting online classes, too, shifted to the physical mode today.

A teacher of a leading nursery school told PTI, "Making them adapt to a new atmosphere which is different from the familiar comforts of their homes will be our primary task. We will start teaching lessons thereafter.”

"Face masks have been made mandatory for children aged five and above," Medical and Family Welfare Minister Ma Subramanian said. "This means that the kindergarten children need not wear masks," he told reporters here when his attention was drawn to the children not wearing the face masks.

Strictly directions have been released for schools to follow the SoP on COVID-19 safety precautions. On February 15, the state authorities issued an official government order permitting playschools and nursery schools to function from today while allowing exhibitions to be held.

Amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapidly increasing number of cases, the state government ordered the closure of schools in March 2020. Ahead of the reopening, the school management sanitized, cleaned and disinfected the classrooms and premises.

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