- It is becoming increasingly evident that the situation is reaching a tipping point for children as they continue to stay cooped up in the comforts of home deprived of conventional pedagogy. The pandemic shows no signs of resting or feeling fatigued, unlike human beings across the universe. Nonetheless, the damages to the future generation in their growth prospects in the absence of quality education will prove to be monumental if the school continues to remain closed any longer. To its credit, the Union Health Ministry has recommended the opening of schools in states depending on the infection scenario locally. Taking a cue from the guidelines, many of the states have opened or are in the process of opening the schools in the coming days.
PC: Nandini
- It is amply clear by now that digital education has a limited purpose to serve and is a poor substitute to classroom learning, socialization, and group outdoor activities that only schools provide. The issue has reached such a stage that it no longer makes sense to disallow children from visiting schools for classroom learning. The global scientific and medical community has strongly vouched for commencement of schools on the back of available evidence pointing to lesser risks of contracting Covid infections at schools. Understandably, there will be concerned parents who might be apprehensive in consenting to send their children, but the show must go on, as they say, and the time has indeed come to move ahead.
- Hearteningly, valid apprehensions of parents will be mitigated to a large extent with the trials on two vaccines for children expected soon and approvals likely by September. On its part, the Government of India should begin the vaccination drive of eligible children and adolescents simultaneously instead of waiting till next year or so as reports appearing in the newspapers indicate. Note that the 2011 Census revealed 47 crore children in India between 0-18 years. Despite being such a large demographic, children have not factored in the Union Government’s vaccination targets. Adults have been prioritized for health and economic reasons and the current drive aiming to fully vaccinate all adults by December is increasingly looking tough.
PC: NICOLE KARLIS
- Children have already paid a very high price. As such, there is no way but to increase the production of vaccines so that both children and adults can be simultaneously inoculated. Where do the vaccines under trial stand right now? Covaxin, with 7 crore doses administered to adults to date, has enrolled 2-18 years olds for trials and ZyCov-D, solely for adolescents. Approvals are granted now for ZyCov-D. Urgency should be shown to reserve Covaxin doses now in production for school-going children too. It will amount to no less than cruelty if the vaccination drive is delayed for children after approvals. All stakeholders should up the ante on a far footing from now on. Moving ahead on the vaccination drive for adolescents should also take precedence along with others.
