Colleges in Maharashtra to reopen from February 15, important guidelines here

University and colleges in Maharashtra will reopen from February 15, after a 10-month-long break due to COVID-19 pandemic. State Higher and Technical Education Minister Uday Samant, made the announcements. Further, he informed that the colleges will start classes with 50% attendance on a rotation basis. 

Classes and examinations will be conducted both online and offline and attendance will be voluntary, he said. Samant said universities can come out with their own SOPs, adding the mandatory 75% attendance rule will be relaxed and students will not be debarred from exams.

However, all college hostels may not reopen from February 15, as some of them are being used as quarantine centres, the Minister said. Maharashtra had been conducting online classes for the college and university students since March 2020 due to COVID induced lockdown.

The decision about reopening of colleges located in restricted areas will be taken by the university, only after consultation with the local body or district collector and district disaster management authority. Asked about students' commuting woes in Mumbai, Samant said  the university was trying to work out their academic schedule to match the restricted train timings in the city.

Guidelines for colleges

The students and staff members will have to wear face masks.

Maintaining social distancing inside the campuses will be compulsory.

Universities and colleges will have to provide sanitisers inside the campus.

The rule of minimum 75% attendance will be waived for this year. 

Students will be provided both online and offline options for sitting for exams.

There will be phased opening of college hostels.

Conducting electrical and safety audits of the hostels before students are allowed to stay in them.

The Maharashtra government had earlier announced the reopening of schools for Classes 5 to 8 based on the ground situation in respective regions. Thane had reopened its schools on January 27. The government is yet to take a call on reopening the schools for Classes 1 to 4.