All schools and Anganwadi centres in Odisha’s Ganjam district will remain closed until November 7 in view of the ongoing post-flood cleaning, disinfection and repair work following Cyclone Arnab.
Ganjam Collector V. Keerthi Vasan announced the closure, stating that the administration needs additional time to restore normal conditions in educational institutions affected by the floods.
The education infrastructure in the district has suffered significant damage due to the floods triggered by Cyclone Arnab. According to preliminary assessments, as many as 498 schools have been affected across Ganjam district.
The initial damage assessment revealed that 1,032 classrooms have been damaged, while the boundary walls of 215 schools have been destroyed. Several other educational infrastructure facilities are also suspected to have suffered damage.
Following the receding of floodwaters, cleaning, disinfection and repair work has been initiated in the affected schools. The administration is prioritising the restoration of damaged educational institutions to ensure that regular academic activities can resume at the earliest.
Special attention is being given to cleaning and disinfecting classrooms, repairing damaged boundary walls and restoring other essential infrastructure.
The district administration is working to complete the restoration activities within the stipulated period. However, the resumption of regular classes will depend on the completion of cleaning, sanitisation and repair work.
Parents and students are awaiting further instructions from the district administration regarding the reopening of schools and Anganwadi centres.