The authorities in Delhi and NCR’s two cities – Gurugram and Noida – announced the closure of physical classes and to conduct online classes for all students starting tomorrow, November 19. The administration in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat, Meerut and Hapur also announced the closure of the schools due to deteriorating air quality in the region.
District Officer Manish Verma gave the order to close schools in Noida till 23 November. However, studies will continue through online classes in Gautam Buddha Nagar. The air quality breached the danger-mark in Nodia, prompting the administration to take a call to shut the schools.
Meanwhile, the Delhi administration revoked all in-person classes for classes 10 and 12 on Monday, following yesterday’s order to shut schools up to class 9. The announced came after the city choked under “severe” levels of pollution for the sixth straight day.
“From tomorrow physical classes shall be suspended for Class 10 and 12 as well, and all studies will be shifted online,” Chief Minister Atishi said in a post on X. “With the imposition of GRAP-4 from Today, physical classes were discontinued for all students, apart from Class 10 and 12. All schools will hold online classes, until further orders,” Chief Minister Atishi said in a post on X on Sunday.
SC’s intervention to close all schools
The announcement to close class 10 to 12 comes after the Supreme Court directed the administration to revoke the physical class in Delhi due to the worsening air quality. The Court emphasised the need for all educational institutions to switch to online classes as a precautionary measure against hazardous air pollution levels.
According to the court’s new order, now, all classes will be continued online for the sake of student’s well-being. The court questioned the Delhi government and the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) over the delay in invoking pollution preventive measures under GRAP stages.
Delhi University suspends physical classes till Nov 23 as air quality worsens
Delhi University also announced to conduct online classes till November 23. In a notification, the university stated, “In the larger interest of students of the colleges and the departments of the University of Delhi, it has been decided that the classes shall be conducted in online mode till Saturday the 23rd November, 2024.
Regular classes in physical mode to resume from Monday, the 25th November 2024.”
The schedule of examinations and interviews, however, remains unchanged, it said. The Delhi government has termed the worsening air quality a “medical emergency” and urged institutions to take preventive measures to safeguard public health.