Swine flu extends school leaves

Fearing the spread of pandemic, schools and cinema halls that were about to be re-opened tomorrow will now remain closed till August 23

Swine flu extends school leaves

Fearing the spread of pandemic, schools and cinema halls that were about to be re-opened tomorrow will now remain closed till August 23

City students can now enjoy a few more holidays, as the Pune district administration has decided not to re-openu00a0 schools and cinema halls tomorrow as scheduled. Instead, as per new directives, all educational institutions in the city will remain shut till August 23.

Dr Dilip Sarda, president of Indian Medical Association (IMA) has welcomed the decision. "H1N1 virus remains active in a human body for at least seven days. Hence, the authorities have taken the right decision of keeping the schools closed for yet another week," Sarda said.

Stay indoors
He, however, is fearful that following the extension in the date of re-opening schools people might start getting restless. Sarda said, "There are chances that transmission of the virus may increase if people start going out again. Hence, they should remain indoors for a few more days."

Likewise, Dr Vidya Yerawadekar, principal director of Symbiosis, said, "As the situation is now getting under control, it's necessary for people to be more cautious and stay at home." However,u00a0 Yerawadekar feels that even though schools will re-open next week, they will not see 100 per cent attendance. "Students will start coming to schools regularly only in the first week of September," she said.

Meanwhile, Jaya Bhaskar, principal of the Abhinav High School whose 21 students were reported to be infected by H1N1 virus, said, "Not only will we go ahead as per the new directives, but we'll also request parents not to send their children to school even if they have minor cough and cold."

Parents are not in a mood to take any chances either. Sameer Godse, a parent, said, "The authorities should take a call on re-opening schools only after they are 100 per cent sure that the pandemic is under control."