The Odisha government on Thursday announced that schools and colleges in the state would reopen from February 7. Students from Class VII onwards will be asked to attend schools.

Announcing this chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said offline classes for students of kindergarten (KG) up to Class VII will resume from February 14.

“The decision to open the educational institutions has been taken considering the larger interest of the students,” said Mohapatra.

Hostels and skill development centres will also reopen from February 7. As per the press release issued by the Special Relief Commission (SRC), “Examination for classes up to standard 9 and for promotion of students from standard 11 to 12 will be done through class assessment. Examination for Class X and Class XII will be done as per the guidelines of the boards and councils.”