Karnataka will reopen colleges from November 17, after having kept them shut since March, amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The development was confirmed by the state’s Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Higher Education CN Ashwath Narayan after his meeting with the Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa.
However, students will be given the option to continue to attend classes online. “The government has decided to start graduate colleges from November 17. Students will be given the opportunity to learn online or attend offline classes. Students who opt to attend classes must bring a letter of permission from their parents,” Narayan said.
The deputy chief minister added that engineering, diploma, postgraduate and graduate colleges will be reopened first.
In its guidelines for ‘Unlock 5.0’, the Centre had permitted states and Union Territories to decide if they want to reopen educational institutions outside containment zones from October 15. Multiple states have allowed graded reopening of schools.
As of October 23, Karnataka had recorded more than 7.8 lakh COVID-19 cases – making it one of the worst-affected states in India. The state had reported over 10,700 deaths due to the infectious disease.
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