Teachers to be vaccinated on priority before schools reopen in AP

As the schools in Andhra Pradesh are set to reopen from 16 August 2021, all the teachers are to be vaccinated on a priority basis. On Friday, AP Education Minister, Dr Audimulapu Suresh, spoke to the officials through video conference, emphasising the immediate need for teachers to be vaccinated immediately by treating them as frontline warriors. 

The Education Minister said that the Andhra Pradesh Department of Public Health and Family Welfare has already issued orders this month to vaccinate teachers, faculty, professors, and other teaching staff in the education sector. He directed the Regional Education Officers of colleges, Regional Education Directors of schools, District Education Officers (DEO) and University Registrars to coordinate with the Joint Collector (Development) and District Medical and Health Officer to speed up the vaccination process. He told the concerned authorities to keep track of the teachers vaccinated in AP. 

 It may be recalled that after the second wave of the pandemic, the State Government has started online classes from 12 July for the students of nursery to class X. 

Before reopening the schools, a training program on workbooks is also being conducted from 15 July – 15 August. Now that the schools are prepared to reopen in less than a month, many teachers are yet to get vaccinated with two doses. There have also been cases of many teachers who were affected during the first and second wave of the pandemic when they went to schools and colleges for giving online classes. 

All the schools in the state have been told to maintain strict Covid-19 protocols while the children are attending school. Teachers and students are to wear masks and social distancing has to be followed in the classrooms. Also, all pending repair work in the schools, as part of the Nadu-Nedu program, is to be completed by August 2021.