The government has extended the closure of educational institutions till June 12, saying the reopening is subject to the drop in Covid infection rate below 5 per cent and inoculation of vaccines of university students. The education ministry said the reopening might be delayed further, considering the rise in virus infection rate in recent weeks and uncertainty over-vaccination due to a shortage of jabs.
When the government could not arrange to vaccinate more than ten percent of the population, it is proven a messy government for big projects for fat corruption. The government should find out the singing sycophants how incompetent they are as ministers and how rich they have become. Sycophants for corruption are naturally unfit as ministers.
However, experts have said the government is not eager to reopen the educational institutions though it recently allowed the resumption of different types of business activities. Long closure will increase the number of dropouts as well as child marriages. Besides, it is taking a toll on many children most of whom are deprived of online classes.
The education ministry plans to hold in-person classes for the SSC and HSC examinees of 2021 and 2022 six days a week. SSC and HSC syllabuses have been shortened. SSC students will have to attend classes for 60 days and the HSC students for 84 days. After that, there will be a two-week gap. And then the examinations will be held. Students of classes six to nine will have to go to schools once a week. The number of classes will be increased in keeping with the improvement in the Covid situation. Students of class five will attend classes six days a week whereas students of classes one to four will go to school once a week.
Academic activities of around four crore students have been affected by the Covid-induced closure since March 17 last year. It led to the cancellation of exams and left the academic calendar in disarray. Many schools, colleges and universities have been offering online classes. But many students, especially those in rural areas, were left out because of the digital divide.
Lockdown is the easy answer for our incompetent ministers. The truth is damage to education does not worry the government. As long as the students are locked in and are not free to create political agitations it is good for the sleeping government
Any competent and responsible government does the hardest to vaccinate at least 70% of the population. In Bangladesh not even 10% of the population has been vaccinated. For availability of vaccines our government is dependent only on one favourite private pharmaceutical company and India.
If the government has to be a competent wake up government it has to get rid of incompetent sleeping ministers who wake up when there is corruption.
