Mumbai: Parents of school kids aren’t worked up about Omicron

Teachers follow Covid-19 protocols while welcoming students at a BMC school

Despite the threat of the Omicron variant lurking, parents do not seem to be worried about sending their children to school. Findings from a new survey revealed that 46 per cent parents from Maharashtra want in-person schools to continue until there are multiple Omicron cases reported in their respective districts.

LocalCircles, a community social media platform, which has been conducting several surveys during the pandemic to understand overall public opinion, had recently reached out to parents amidst rising cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. The survey, which was conducted at the national level, also had focused groups in Maharashtra, where schools have begun in-person sessions for all classes this week.

Of those surveyed, 46 per cent respondents said that they would like in-person schools to shut only when there are multiple cases of Omicron in the district. Interestingly, 35 per cent of them specified that multiple cases of non-travel history should be reported to shut in-person classes. While 22 per cent felt that even a single case of Omicron in the district was enough reason to close offline schools, only 15 per cent parents seem to be wanting in-person classes to shut immediately.

"With many parents realising that Omicron could again shut in-person schools for several months, a high percentage of parents are keen that in-person learning is maximised till it comes to their district," said Sachin Taparia, founder, LocalCircles "With 5x more transmissibility of Omicron, lack of outdoor air ventilation in most classes, the risk of spread in schools is real and hence, the school and district authorities must keep a close watch on state of affairs and take timely decisions."

LocalCircles will share the findings of this survey with key stakeholders in the Central Government and Chief Secretaries of all states so that inputs of parents can be considered while finalising policies for schools.