Sindh, KP, Balochistan announce winter vacations schedule for schools

Karachi/Quetta/Peshawar: The Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan governments have announced winter vacations schedule for schools.

The public and private schools in the “summer zone” of the Balochistan province will begin winter vacations from December 25 till January 4. 

According to the notification, schools in the “winter zone” are closed till February 28, 2022. 

Sindh government, on the other hand, has announced the vacations from December 20. 

The province will have a total of 16 holidays.

Minister for Elementary and Secondary Education Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Shahram Khan Tarakai on Friday announced that the winter vacations for educational institutions in plain areas will be observed from January 3, 2021, to January 12, 2022. 

According to a statement issued by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Elementary and Secondary Education Department, all educational institutions in hilly areas will observe winter break from December 24, 2021, to February 28, 2022.

In pursuance of the NCOC session, winter vacations schedule has been notified. In plain areas, vacations will be From 3rd Jan to 12th Jan 2022, and in hilly regions, vacations will be from 24 Dec to 28 Feb 2022. pic.twitter.com/uAbSqJ6xhL

— Shahram Khan Tarakai (@ShahramKTarakai) December 17, 2021

Earlier in the day, Punjab government had announced the winter vacations for public and private schools across the province. 

In a tweet, Minister for Education Punjab Murad Raas said that the winter vacations for public and private schools would be observed from December 23 to January 6, 2022.

The education minister also advised the masses to get vaccinated and follow government-mandated standard operating procedures (SOPs), as the new coronavirus variant Omicron has also emerged in Pakistan.

“All Public & Private Schools of Punjab to remain closed for winter vacation starting December 23rd, 2021 to January 6th, 2022. Please get vaccinated and follow SOPs issued by the government,” the minister tweeted.

 
Earlier in the day, National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) had decided that winter vacations in educational institutions will commence from January 3 next year.

The decision was taken at an NCOC meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Planning Asad Umar (Chairman NCOC).

The NCOC said in a Twitter post that the decision has been taken to speed up the process of vaccination among the people.

“During today’s NCOC session, it is decided that winter vacations in education sector will start from January 3, 2022 apart from fog and smog hit districts of Pakistan,” the post stated.

 
On the other hand, the Lahore High Court (LHC) has ordered closure of schools from December 23 to January 4, nullifying NCOC decision to hold winter vacations from last week of January 2022.

LHC announced the verdict during smog case hearing and stated that the decision of closure of schools has been taken while considering the hazardous effects of smog in the city.

The court further remarked that the decision will help in the reduction of the effects of smog.