Murad Raas Says Schools May Remain Closed For Extended Period

Punjab education minister, Murad Raas has announced that in the current situation of the coronavirus pandemic the schools may remain closed for an extended time. He said that “I want to reopen to the schools but it does not seem possible in the ongoing circumstances. So the affiliated authorities have to go with the option to extend the closure of the schools.” Earlier it was announced that all the educational institutes across Pakistan will remain closed till 10th January 2021. The interprovincial minister meeting will be held on 4th January to decide about the reopening schedule of the institutes. The minister said the Punjab government will promote the students on the basis of homework. 

The meeting of national command and operation was held on 23rd November after which the federal education minister, Shafqat Mahmood had announced to shut down all the educational institutes including universities, schools, and colleges of Pakistan. Moreover, the exams scheduled in this time period also got postponed however some professional exams had been conducted as per the announced schedule. The minister proclaimed that the revised exam schedule will be announced after monitoring the COVID-19 situation. The NCOC had also directed the provincial education ministers to take the micro-decisions about the examination and academics.  

According to the Murad Raas, the private schools' act will be considered for approval. Private Education Provider Registration and Information System platform had been launched by the school education department.  He said that the private schools can do registration with the provincial government through the online platform. As per the sources, approximately 31,000 private schools had been registered. The last date for the registration of the private schools is 31st March 2021. The private owners have to fulfill the registration requirements before the deadline. The minister added that the Punjab government has launched the child education book to facilitate the students. The book has been designed according to international standards.