NEPALGUNJ, JULY 13

With the number of COVID-19 cases declining, Raptisonari Rural Municipality in Banke has prepared to resume operation of schools from July 30.

The rural municipality meeting held among people’s representatives, political parties and head teachers under the chairmanship of the rural municipality Chairman Lahur Ram Tharu yesterday decided to open schools.

Chairman Tharu said schools would resume from July 30 and preventive and precautionary measures against coronavirus would be adopted. “We have decided to open schools from July 30 if the situation is favourable,” he said.

“All the people participating in the meeting had suggested that schools be reopened as teaching-learning activities had been badly affected due to the contagion,”

Tharu added. The rural municipality had used some schools as quarantine facilities to control the virus spread.

Raptisonari RM Chief Administrative Officer Dal Bahadur Basnet said schools, which were used as quarantine sites, would be sanitised before classes resumed. “The schools will be disinfected before classes start,” he added.

The RM’s Education Department Chief Jiban Neupane said the decision to resume schools was taken keeping in mind the drop in infection rate in the rural municipality and the decision would be implemented if the situation was favourable.

He informed that a small number of students from higher grades would be called for classes and gradually the number would be increased.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on July 14, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.