Pakistan
Rise in COVID cases forces educational institutions in Punjab cities to close for 2 weeks from March 15
Islamabad/UNI: Pakistan's Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said on Wednesday that educational institutions in as many as seven cities of Punjab province will close down for at least two weeks from March 15 due to the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in recent days.
The minister said this while addressing a press conference alongside Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan shortly after the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) reviewed the coronavirus situation in educational institutions across the country, Dawn reported.
Mahmood said spring break will begin in the following cities in Punjab and will continue till March 28.
Faisalabad
Gujranwala
Lahore
Gujrat
Multan
Rawalpindi
Sialkot
He further added that the same decision will also apply to educational institutions in the national capital Islamabad.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he said that the directive will only be applicable to schools in the provincial capital Peshawar which has seen a steady rise in the number of new cases.
He said that the provincial governments will keep reviewing the situation and, if the situation worsens, schools will be closed wherever necessary.
The minister said that the decisions will not affect the holding of O and A level examinations, which will be held by following proper SOPs.
He said that it had previously been decided that exams for grade 9,10, 11 and 12 would be held during the period between May and June and schools have been given the liberty to take individual decisions based on the ground situation.
The minister said that all steps have to be taken while keeping in mind the safety and security of nearly 50 million children who attend schools, colleges and universities, as this sector has a direct effect on the spread of the disease.
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