On December 17, 2021, the Commission for Air Quality Management allowed schools in Delhi-NCR to reopen in a phased manner. The commission said that schools for students of classes 6 and above can reopen with immediate effect, while schools for students of classes 5 and below can reopen from December 27, 2021.
Soon after the announcement, the Delhi government allowed all schools, government and private, to start physical classes for students of classes 6 and above from December 18. However, attendance was not made mandatory and students were given the option to either attend physical classes or continue online classes.
“All the govt, govt aided, unaided recognised, NDMC, MCDs and Delhi Cantonment Board Schools will reopen from December 18 for classes 6 onwards,” the commission said.
The commission further added, “State Governments of NCR and GNCTD may take the decision to the resumption of physical classes, for students up to V standard, only w.e.f. 27th December, 2O21, duly considering the Air Quality Index IAQII and the winter vacation scheme.”
However, with the rising cases of the omicron, it is unlikely that the government will open schools for students of classes 5 and below. But, the final decision is yet to be taken. Further, as per the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) data, the air quality of Delhi is still in the ‘very poor’ category.
