CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has told colleges across the State to start in-person classes from the current semester, but many of these institutions don’t have enough infrastructure, and following the Covid protocol will be difficult.
Some government colleges are still being used as Covid Care Centres, officials from these institutions said, pointing out that there isn’t enough space to have all students on campus. Others said that while the number of seats at government colleges has been increased by at least 25 per cent this year, infrastructure hasn’t been upgraded.
“Some colleges don’t even have enough desks and benches for students. Forget about maintaining physical distance. How is it possible to conduct in-person classes for all students in accordance with the Covid standard operating procedures (SOP)?” asked a teacher from a government college in Chennai.
Most colleges in the city are to resume offline classes six days a week from November 29. “It’s a Government Order (GO) and we have to follow it. But implementing the Covid SOP will be tough,” said the principal of a government college in Coimbatore.
A shortage of infrastructure isn’t the only problem though. Many colleges don’t have enough teachers. Statewide, at least 7,000 teacher posts are lying vacant. “The strength of students has increased, but the number of teachers hasn’t gone up accordingly. Filling the vacancies has been a long-standing demand,” said T Veeramani, president of the Tamil Nadu Government College Teachers’ Association.
However, he backed the GO, saying resuming in-person classes is the need of the hour. “Government colleges don’t have adequate infrastructure but resuming offline classes is necessary for the future of our students,” Veeramani said.
MKU classes back online
Madurai: The Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) has suspended offline classes till Saturday, as two students from the Chemistry department tested positive for Covid-19