A staff member checks the body temperature of a teacher at the entrance to a girls' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 25, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
COLOMBO, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan authorities reopened schools in the Western Province for senior grades on Monday after shutting them down since October last year due to a vast spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Education Ministry said in a statement that schools re-opened for students who would be sitting for the GCE Ordinary Level examinations in March under strict health guidelines imposed by the Health Ministry.
All classrooms were disinfected on Sunday while students were informed to wear masks and maintain social distance.
However schools in areas declared as isolated due to the virus spread would continue to remain closed.
The Education Ministry said that 79,000 students from the Western Province will sit for the GCE Ordinary Level Examination which will be held in March and the decision to re-open schools was taken to expedite their missed studies.
Sri Lanka's Western Province has been declared as a hot bed by the health authorities since a second wave of the pandemic swept through the country in early October.
A staff member disinfects a classroom at a school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 24, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
A staff member checks the body temperature of students at the entrance to a girls' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 25, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
A staff member is about to hand out a copy of health guide at the entrance to a boys' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 25, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
A staff member hands out a copy of health guide to a student at the entrance to a boys' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 25, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
Students wash their hands at a girls' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 25, 2021. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua) ■
