Students appeared excited while entering the schools and meeting their friends, classmates and teachers after a long gap. Pic/ Sameer Abedi
At the school gates, authorities ensured that all the students wore proper masks and sanitised their hands before entering the premises, and only one student was asked to sit on a single bench in classrooms. Pic/ Pradeep Divar
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the decision to reopen schools was a 'very difficult' one, and appealed to teachers and parents to take care of the students. PIc/ Sameer Abedi
Until now, schools were conducting physical classes only in those areas which were reporting relatively fewer Covid-19 cases. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
According to the Maharashtra government, physical sessions have started for classes 5 to 12 in rural areas and for classes 8 to 12 in urban areas of the state. PIc/ Pradeep Dhivar
As per SOPs issued by the state government for the reopening of schools, it is not mandatory for students to attend physical classes. If they want to attend, they will have to submit consent letters from their parents. PIc/ Pradeep Dhivar
Various schools welcomed the students with 'rangolis' (colourful traditional patterns), flowers and balloons on the first day of reopening of the institutions. PIc/ Pradeep Dhivar
Many students seemed excited after coming back to school and meeting their classmates and teachers physically. Pic/ Satej Shinde
In Maharashtra, physical classes in schools were stopped in March 2020, after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Pic/ Sameer Markande
The state government in July this year allowed schools to restart physical classes in the rural areas where Covid-19 prevalence was negligible. Pic/ Satej Shinde
The decision mainly benefited the state's Vidarbha region, but schools in major cities like Mumbai and Pune remained closed. Pic/ Satej Shinde
The latest decision was taken after consulting health officials and the state government's Covid-19 task force. Pic/ Sameer Abedi
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