Majority of parents still apprehensive about arrangements at schools

Rawalpindi : The parents have cautiously welcomed the plan to reopen schools in mid-September as most of them are apprehensive whether there would be enough arrangements in the schools to impart education to the students in a corona-free environment.

Surraya Mehtab, a mother of two school-going children, said “The opening of schools is a positive development but safety of our children is more important than any other thing.”

“The schools must be cleaned every day and the management will have to improvise in countless ways. Because making child students understand to maintain physical distance and observe Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) is particularly a difficult task,” she said.

It is pertinent to mention here that various segments of the society are spreading information without proper evidence that the coronavirus does not affect children. There are number of examples even in big countries like China and the United States where children got infected from the virus. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also been continuously conveying that coronavirus is dangerous for people belonging to all ages.

Zulqarnain Haider, a private employee, said “The discussion is underway on media about the need to have students and teachers tested, but no clear picture has yet been drawn as to where the corona tests will be provided and who will pay for them.”

“It will be a huge responsibility for the relevant authorities to implement the plan both in public and private sector schools in line with the SOPs introduced by the provincial government,” he said.

Tauqeer Shah, a government employee, said “We are welcoming re-opening of schools but at the same time we are also concerned about our children.”