Pandemics create a lot of disruptions in the society and we are directly affected. Covid-19 pandemic has changed a lot of aspects of human lives since the beginning of 2020. Several countries have gone for complete lockdown for several months to protect their citizens. Other countries too have restricted many common activities to some extent. In the majority of the countries, traditional classes in the schools, colleges and universities were not possible. Smart classrooms have emerged as a main alternative for the traditional classes. These smart classrooms are very much different from the video broadcasting. Several immersive and interactive technologies have been proposed for smart classrooms. In this article, we provide the basic principles of smart classrooms, their enabling technologies, and their impact on the education sector. We also provide specific pandemic centric initiatives for effective education in a virtual environment and their effects on the students, teachers and other stakeholders.