The UT Chandigarh administration’s decision of restricting unvaccinated students of age group 12 to 18 from attending offline classes in schools has been put in abeyance. It has come in the light of yesterday’s Supreme Court judgment in which it was ruled that no individual can be forced to get vaccinated.
In the wake of rising covid positive cases in neighbouring states, the UT administration had earlier taken a decision to restrict unvaccinated students in the age group of 12 to 18 from attending classes in the physical mode from May 4.
On a positive note, this decision did led to spike in the vaccination rate of children in this age group. As many as 14,000 children were reported to have taken their first dose in first 10 days.
The data shows that the Corbevax vaccination of children in the age group of 12 to 14 with the first dose has jumped from 38 per cent (before the orders) to 60 per cent. The percentage of children between age group 15 to 18 Around 98 per cent children vaccinated with the first dose of Covaxin stands at around 90 per cent.
The private schools had earlier maintained that they would not provide any alternative medium of study and those not attending physical classes will be marked absent. The UT administration, however, said that such students be allowed to come to school to appear for exams and practicals.
the Advisor to the UT Administrator, Dharam Pal, after having reviewed the status of the positivity rate of the Covid infection and vaccination, has said though Covid vaccination is optional, yet it was duty of administration to educate and inform citizens about its benefits. He added that Health and Education Department would continue their efforts to achieve 100 per cent vaccination with first dose for all the children in the age group 12 to 18 by May 1.
Source: The Tribune
