LAHORE: Punjab Education Minister Murad Raas has asserted that instead of shutting down schools across the country to contain the spread of the coronavirus, imposing the government’s recommended ‘smart lockdowns’ is a better choice.
Taking to Twitter, Murad Raas said that a meeting of all provincial education ministers will be held on Monday, November 16, to discuss the prevailing condition of coronavirus in the country.
“In my opinion, we should focus on a Smart Lockdown rather than an across the board shutdown of schools,” the minister added. He added that he will provide further updates related to the decisions after the meeting.
Tomorrow is the meeting of all Provincial Education Ministers to discuss the prevailing condition of COVID 19. In my opinion we should focus on a Smart Lockdown rather than an across the board shutdown of Schools. Will update tomorrow.
— Murad Raas (@DrMuradPTI) November 15, 2020
Federal Education and Vocational Training Shafqat Mahmood announced the Monday meeting earlier this week. The forum will also discuss the possibility of announcing winter vacations early this year and extending the winter break to keep children at home.
Earlier on Friday, Murad Raas, while talking to a private news channel, said that Punjab was closely monitoring the situation in schools, adding that schools were doing “absolutely fine.” He added that there should be no winter vacation either.
The minister maintained that an across-the-board decision for schools is not possible because of the nature of cases in different cities. “If there are more cases in Gujranwala, for instance, we cannot close schools in other cities,” he remarked.
