Cyclone Dana: Kolkata Schools Revert To COVID System

Kolkata: The COVID-19 pandemic was a nightmare no one wants to revisit.

But desperate times call for desperate measures.

As part of precautions against impending severe cyclonic storm ‘Dana’, the West Bengal government on Tuesday issued a circular to suspend academic activities from October 23 to 26 in nine districts, including Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and Howrah.

There wasn’t a problem on October 23, but several schools were closed on Thursday and all educational institutions will almost certainly be shut on Friday as Cyclone Dana will be making landfall around midnight, and heavy rainfall is expected for the first half of October 25.

Not willing to halt classes soon after the recent Puja holidays, several private schools have decided to conduct online classes on Thursday and Friday, reported The Telegraph Online.

It was a throwback to the COVID times, when students had to attend classes as well as sit for exams virtually, from home, months on end.

Among institutions which switched to online mode are St James’ School, Pratt Memorial, La Martiniere for Boys and Girls, South Point, Lakshmipat Singhania Academy and Indus Valley World School.

However, the problems faced during COVID could resurface vis-à-vis connectivity.

Thursday was still okay as the clouds had just started gathering and there were light drizzles from afternoon onwards in Kolkata. The weather is now turning for the worse and will deteriorate once Dana makes land fall in the early hours of October 25.

Students and their parents are not sure whether it would be possible for schools to conduct online classes on Friday, amid heavy rain and storm.

As one parent pointed out, Internet connectivity is not always stable on days like these and it would be difficult to stay connected online.

“We have told teachers that if classes are disrupted, they will have to set work. But it becomes difficult for us to not take classes at all, especially for board batches who have their pre-board exams after Diwali,” TT Online quoted Lakshmipat Singhania Academy principal Meena Kak as saying.

Some schools closed for Puja vacation will reopen after Diwali.

“During this period, classes are only held for the Board batches and children with special needs. Those sessions will be held online in the two days,” said Shri Shikshayatan School principal Sangeeta Tandon.