Schools in Mizoram will be closed to students in grades 1 to 9 and 11 amid the rise in coronavirus cases, according to new COVID-19 guidelines issued on Friday. Colleges, higher education institutions and universities will also remain closed statewide, it said.
Hostels at the schools will also be closed and classes will be conducted in online mode, it said. However, schools and hostels will remain open to students in grades 10 and 12, who will appear for their board exams this year, it said.
Classes will also take place online at all colleges, higher education institutions and universities.
The School Education Department will ensure full vaccination of teachers and other officials on duty, it said.
Training institutes are allowed to remain open at 50 percent capacity, it added.
The new guidelines, which will be in effect from January 8 to January 31, prohibit worship services in churches during the night. It will only be allowed during the day with 50 percent of the seating capacity.
Congregational or mass singing in churches and public gatherings will still be banned, it said.
Picnic areas, movie theaters, public parks, swimming pools, gymnasiums and beauty salons will be closed in the area of Aizawl Municipal Corporation (AMC), the guidelines said.
District deputy commissioners will agree on staggered opening of stores in consultation with the Local Level Task Force (LLTF) or Village Level Task Force (VLTF) and market associations.
In the AMC area, all Group A and B officers and their staff will go to the office, while only 50 percent of Group C and D staff will go to the office and the rest will work from home.
Disabled people and pregnant female employees are exempt from attending offices but are required to work from home, the guidelines say.
Mizoram reported 579 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the state’s total to 1,43,772. The toll rose to 555 when one more person died.
