More than a month after reopening, schools will be shut for students up to Class 8 in Mizoram due to spike in Covid19 cases in the state.
The Mizoram government again banned night church service and extended the duration of the existing night curfew in all district headquarters, including Aizawl in view of the second wave of Covid19.
According to the new guidelines, issued on Friday night, only online mode classes will be done for students of Class 8 and below as normal physical classes of these standards have been suspended with immediate effect.
The proposed reopening of schools for the new academic session 2021-2022 on May 4 for all classes (Nursery to Class 12) has also been cancelled or reversed until further order, the guideline said, adding that it covers all schools, including those under CBSE.
However, ongoing examinations for classes 9-12 will continue till completion.
Schools for students of Classes 5-8 were reopened on March 1 and for students of Classes 3 and 4 on April 1.
Classes for universities and colleges are subject to the decision of the higher and technical education department of the state.
The new guidelines, which came into effect on Saturday, banned night church service and extended the duration of night curfew from 8:30 pm to 4 am in all district headquarters.
Earlier, night church service was allowed twice a week with the opening of religious places in the state in March and night curfew was clamped between 10 pm and 4 am in all district headquarters.
Congregational singing and any singing in the form of solo, duet and quartet are strictly prohibited in church and any other gatherings, the order said.
Churches, cinema halls, auditoriums, community halls, picnic spot and other resort places are allowed to open with 50% of their sitting capacity.
The number of attendees at the funeral, wedding and any social or political gathering is fixed at 50.
Shops, hotels, restaurants and other business establishments will be opened under strict adherence to Covid19 protocols.
The guidelines said all returnees from other states will be screened with Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) and those tested negative will be placed under home isolation for seven days of self-monitoring.
However, the returnees will not need to go for home quarantine if they test negative through RT-PCR and Truenat laboratories.
Returnees from abroad or new Covid19 variant affected states will have to be quarantined at designated facilities.
Quarantine is not mandatory for people, who visit the state on a short stay (not longer than 96 hours) provided they possess Covid19 negative certificate from ICMR recognised RT-PCR or Truenat or CBNAT labs, not older than 96 hours upon their arrival in the state.
Public interview for ministers is suspended, for the time being, the order said.
Mizoram on Saturday reported 25 new Covid19 cases, taking the state’s tally to 4,583.
The state now has 115 active cases, while 4,457 people have recovered from the infection.
At least 11 people have succumbed to the disease so far.