Limited outdoor activities, ORS counters: Schools take heat guard
Times of India | 3 April 2024
Kolkata: With rising temperatures in Kolkata, schools in and around the city are taking precautions as the new academic session begins. Some schools have limited outdoor activities, while others are educating students on coping with the heat.
Heritage School has suspended outdoor activities for students up to class VII, but senior students can go to the playground only in the early morning.DPS New Town has suspended its outdoor activities from Wednesday. They have installed an ORS counter on the school premises and asked children to carry glucose with them. South Point School is starting its new academic session from Wednesday, and the junior section has decided not to allow children to do outdoor activities, switching to indoor games and activities instead.
Some schools have started considering shortening class hours as required and depending on the weather conditions. DAV Public School principal Vijaylakshmi Kumar said, “For the little ones, we have a slightly shortened period of time, and for others, since we start quite early in the morning, we are not bringing any change for them. If the heat gets worse, we will make the decision accordingly.”
St Augustine’s Day School, Shyamnagar, and DPS Howrah have issued guidelines for kids, saying outdoor activities are suspended. The guideline issued reads, “We further recommend that parents should avoid overexposure to direct sunlight over a prolonged period of time.” DPS Howrah principal Sunita Arora said, “We are starting our new session from Wednesday and shared SOP with the children, asking them to carry two water bottles and only indoor games are permitted; no outdoor games are allowed until weather conditions get better. Students will be permitted to do swimming to get some relief.”
Lakshmipat Singhania Academy director Meena Kak said, “The school has just started. We will ask our teachers to be ready for e-classes if the heatwave continues. We will arrange for glucose and other suitable drinks for students and ask them to bring ORS in their water bottles. We might also suspend outdoor activities.”
Birla High School principal Loveleen Saigal said the new session has just begun, and at morning assembly, students have been told to consume a lot of fluids, but outdoor activities have not been suspended as they have sheds.
State-run schools’ summer vacation was brought forward, considering the LS election and the heat, but private schools, which have just started the new academic session, are focusing on conducting as many classes as possible until the vacation starts.