Rationing KMC staff for work
Employees from non-essential services of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) have been deployed for each of the 16 boroughs in Kolkata to make up for staff shortages in conducting door-to-door services. The KMC has launched the drive to identify silent carriers of COVID-19. Officials from non-essential service departments such as tax collection were asked to work in surveillance teams. While health workers will go on door-to-door visits, these officials will contact residents every two-three days to check out if they have developed any symptom of the infection.
ICSE schools not to hike fees
The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) has advised its schools in Bengal for following the Bengal government’s directive of not increasing school fees this year and to ‘’sympathetically’’ consider request of guardians if they can’t pay fees because of lockdown. The school education department has informed about its directive to private schools regarding fees of students. ‘’The Council affiliated schools have been advised to follow the same. An advisory has been sent to schools in this regard,’’ said an official of Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations. The Bengal government had written to all private schools on April 10, asking them not to charge revised fees this year as many household are facing hard times due to lockdown. In the eastern region, Bengal has a substantial number of schools affiliated with CISCE.
Jadavpur University students feed the poor
Students of Jadavpur University who are running a community kitchen to feed the poor have set up a cooperative with farmers of a pocket in South 24-Parganas district to buy their unsold vegetables in exchange of rice and pulses. The students started the community kitchen on the campus last month and set up a cooperative with farmers through a student of Presidency University, who hails from South 24-Parganas district. Bapan Ahmed, the student, floated the idea when he saw vegetables going to waste because farmers could not supply them to markets during the lockdown. The initiative have earned praise of all.
Single set of examiners to check answersheets
A single set of examiners will check answer scripts of Madhyamik exams twice this time. The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education has asked examiners doing the first round of evaluation to recheck the papers to do away with the need for a second set of examiners. The decision to get the papers examined twice by the same group of examiners has been taken to save time and avoid delay in publication of the results, said an official of the board. The Madhyamik results are generally declared between the second and third weeks of May. The process of publication of results has been delayed because of the lockdown.
pranab mondal
Our correspondent in West Bengal
pranabm@newindianexpress.com