Schools in Odisha are once again conducting classes with direct presence of students and teachers after two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but about 30 per cent students are not attending school. In view of the decrease in the attendance of students in the schools, the Odisha government has directed the District Magistrates to take necessary steps and ensure that there is an increase in the attendance of the children in the classes.
State School and Mass Education Department Secretary BP Sethi, in a letter to various districts, said that as per the data provided by the District Education Officers (DEOs), an analysis of the daily attendance of students in schools has revealed that about 70 percent Students are coming to classes. He said that after a detailed analysis it was found that in districts like Malkangiri, Boudh, Gajapati, Sambalpur and Nuapada the attendance of children of classes I to V is less than the state average. He said that the attendance of students of classes VI to VIII in the schools of Malkangiri, Boudh, Sambalpur and Nuapada districts is also very poor. According to Sethi, the attendance of children of secondary classes in schools in Gajapati, Bolangir, Bargarh, Sonpur, Nuapada, Cuttack, Khordha, Koraput, Ganjam, Boudh, Malkangiri, Keonjhar and Sambalpur districts is also less than the state average. He said that the attendance of children in higher secondary classes in schools in Gajapati, Sonepur, Bargarh, Kandhamal and Nuapada districts is very low, which is a matter of concern.