Mysore/Mysuru: Braving intermittent rains, thousands of students of the city and across the district attended schools on the re-opening day of the new academic year (2022-23) this morning.

The Government had announced that all State Board Schools (classes 1 to 10) — Government, aided and unaided — will open from May 16, a fortnight before the usual date of re-opening (normally June 1) in order to make up for learning losses among students due to COVID pandemic and other related restrictions in the past two years.

After a shortened summer holidays, children from classes one to ten, were seen enthusiastically coming back to their schools wearing uniforms on the re-opening day. While several  children were accompanied by their parents, others were seen coming in autos, vans and other means of transport.

On their part, the schools had geared up for the re-opening by cleaning and sanitising the entire premises in the wake of COVID crisis. Most of the schools were decorated and rangolis drawn at the entry gate for welcoming the children. In some schools, the teachers and staff were seen giving roses, sweets and chocolates to students. Overall, the School managements were seen according a warm welcoming the children.

Meanwhile, the kids studying in Government Schools were welcomed with sweets. The Department of Primary and Secondary Education had issued a circular instructing school

authorities to prepare at least one sweet dish along with the mid-day meal served on first day of the school.

DDPI Ramachandraraje Urs and ZP CEO B.R. Poornima visited some of the schools across the district to check for the preparedness.

The DDPI told Star of Mysore that all 3,363 State Board schools in the district re-opened today and the students were distributed text books and other stationeries. Pointing out that the Government’s mid-day meal scheme too commenced today with the re-opening of schools, Urs said that all schools have been asked to follow Government guidelines on COVID such as wearing of face mask, maintenance of physical distance and use of sanitisers.

Asserting that all precautionary measures have been taken to ensure the health of children, in the wake of outbreak of Tomato Flu and other epidemics, the DDPI said that the authorities have been directed to make periodic visits to schools.

Noting that at present, the classes will be held from 10 am to 4 pm, he said that the Department expected a 60 percent attendance on the re-opening day, with continuous rains proving to be a dampener for children.