More Students Return to School as Covid Restrictions Ease

EghtesadOnline: As people are getting vaccinated against the Covid-19 pandemic and restrictions are being relaxed, more students will return to school as of Monday morning.

News ID: ۷۸۷۳۲۴

22 November 2021

Deputy Education Minister Alireza Kamarei said on Sunday that elementary and junior high school students will resume in-person learning starting November 22, ISNA reported.

“Social distancing is the foremost priority for resuming in-person activities,” the official said.

Pupils from rural areas and less-populated schools returned to education centers at the start of the semester while following safety measures.

Asked whether physical presence was mandatory, Kamarei noted, “Schools have been ordered to reopen and students have clear instructions to follow educational rules.”

Schools and universities closed down in February 2020 when the pandemic first emerged in Iran, and all educational institutions switched to online teaching.

Many poor students who did not have access to technological gadgets were deprived of education for almost two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

More than 85% of Iranians are now vaccinated against the deadly virus and daily deaths have dropped from a high of 700 during summer to almost 100 in the past weeks as bodies have developed immunity against the contagion.

Iran is easing lockdown measures and specialists are now saying the country might have averted the sixth wave of the disease.

Over the past 24 hours, more than 652,000 vaccine doses were administered.

The Health Ministry has given out a total of 102.1 million jabs since last February when the national immunization campaign was launched.

Iran is now giving booster shots to those most at risk of contracting the disease and it is also inoculating students between the ages of 12 and 18.

Nighttime Curfew Removed

As per the order of President Ebrahim Raeisi, the government lifted the nightly curfew on vehicle movements after almost one year.

“Considering mass vaccinations, the nighttime curfew are to be lifted in cities,” Raeisi said on Saturday.

The curfew banned the use of personal vehicles from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. to deter public gatherings. The timing of the curfew was later altered to 10 p.m. until 3 a.m.

The top official pointed out that his administration’s priority is to preserve the health of the public.

“The Interior Ministry and the Health Ministry are obligated to carefully monitor the borders,” he added.

According to him, smart lockdown measures will replace current restrictions to only include unvaccinated individuals.