Over 55 academicians, doctors and other professionals have favoured reopening of schools, asserting that Covid-19 vaccination of children should not be a prerequisite for sending them to schools.
In their letter, which has also been marked to the Prime Minister’s Office, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the National Disaster Management Authority Chairperson, the signatories said, “There is global evidence to support school opening and governments should urgently consider opening schools and resuming in-person classes.”
India is among only four to five countries across the world where schools have been closed for such a long time (one-and-half years), they said in the letter.
“A number of governments have not yet reopened schools for all classes because of concerns including students not being vaccinated, schools appearing to be ‘super-spreaders’, fear of a third wave and a rise in cases in areas where schools have been opened....
“There is an urgent need to bring children back to school. Since younger children are least at risk, we urge you to permit primary schools to open first, in line with ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) recommendations, and then higher classes. We look forward to leaders across political parties coming together for the sake of our children,” the letter stated.
“Open schools now with proper planning and if there is a steep rise in cases, shutting them again can be considered as a last resort,” it added.
The signatories said vaccination is not a prerequisite for reopening schools, stating the purpose of vaccination is to prevent severe illness.