France Offers Covid-hit Students Cheap Meals And Counselling

Paris, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Jan, 2021 ) :President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday promised all students in France two square meals a day for just one euro ($1.21) each to help them cope with Covid-19 restrictions.

He said students would also be given subsidies to pay for professional counselling if they felt overwhelmed by the restrictions, which include closed universities, a 6:00 pm nationwide curfew and diminishing opportunities for student jobs.

Speaking to students at the Paris-Saclay university, Macron said there could be no return to normality before the end of the current semester with Covid-related restrictions remaining in force "until the summer".

Macron's promises came a day after students protested across France over their conditions during Covid-19 restrictions, saying they were being pushed to the brink of despair by solitude and financial uncertainty.

Many have demanded a return to full face-to-face teaching suspended due to the pandemic.

For the time being, only first-year students will be permitted to attend classroom tutorials, from January 25 but in half-groups.

But on Thursday, Macron said all students should be allowed on campus once a week as long as distancing measures in auditoriums and classrooms were respected.

"A student must have the same rights as a salary earner," Macron said. "If needed, they must be allowed to come to university once a week."He acknowledged that this would be "complicated" to implement, but that he had confidence in universities that they would manage.