Students across Keralam returned to classrooms on Monday, June 1, 2026, marking the start of the new academic year under heavy police presence to manage widespread traffic congestion.
Chief Minister VD Satheesan officially inaugurated the state-level school reopening ceremony at the Pattom Government Model Girls Higher Secondary School in Thiruvananthapuram.
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New District Ministerial Assignments
The Keralam government issued an executive order assigning district-wise administrative responsibilities to ministers across all 14 districts, according to a statement by the Chief Minister's Office.
Roji M John will oversee Ernakulam district, OJ Janeesh will monitor Thrissur, and N Shamsudheen will take charge of Palakkad district.
PK Basheer has been assigned to Malappuram, AP Anil Kumar to Kozhikode, T Siddique to Wayanad, Sunny Joseph to Kannur, and KM Shaji to Kasaragod.
Separately on Sunday, Chief Minister Satheesan directed authorities to revoke the suspension of S Javad, the Principal of Attingal Model Higher Secondary School, who had been suspended following a third-party complaint regarding a Facebook post.
Traffic Management Measures
To handle the influx of student transport, the Ernakulam district police deployed extensive traffic management squads across 59 identified congestion bottlenecks, including Vyttila Junction, Edappally, and the Goshree bridges.
Approximately 700 personnel from local stations, traffic units, and the armed reserve camp were assigned to peak morning and afternoon hours, accompanied by restrictions on tipper trucks.
"The locations were identified through station-wise surveys and based on previous experience. Around 700 police personnel will be deployed between 7 a.
m. and 10 a.
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m. and again from 3 p.
m. to 6 p.
m. to manage traffic," said Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar, District Police Chief for Kochi city.
Specialized police squads were also sent to monitor school premises for pedestrian safety and conduct checks for driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics.
In rural areas, the Ernakulam Rural Police focused on transport safety by organizing training sessions for school bus operators and conducting documentation checks.
Vehicles face strict inspections to verify permits and fitness certificates, according to Ernakulam Rural District Police Chief K.
S. Sudarshan, who warned of strict actions against impaired drivers.
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The Motor Vehicles Department concluded its mandatory annual fitness safety inspections for all school buses last week ahead of the academic term.
