ISLAMABAD: An emergency meeting of inter-provincial education ministers on Monday decided not to close schools despite the rising coronavirus cases.
A meeting held at the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) decided to defer the decision of winter vacations in schools till a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NSC) being chaired by the prime minister. It also recommended holding extended winter vacations for three months till end of January.
The meeting expressed grave concern over the rising number of coronavirus cases in schools. Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood said the health of students and teachers is precious and stressed that schools must strictly follow all coronavirus SOPs and other safety precautions.
The federal minister said the final decision regarding winter vacation and closure of schools will be taken in the next meeting of interprovincial education ministers to be held on 23rd November.
Prime Minister Imran Khan will preside over a meeting of the NCC to devise a strategy to deal with the rising number of coronavirus cases in the country. The NCC meeting is likely to make a decision about early and extended winter vacations in educational institutions.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) recommended early and extended winter vacations for students due to an increasing number of coronavirus cases at educational institutions.
