KARACHI: Increasing tensions in the city soon after the raid by Rangers on the MQM headquarters led to closure of schools and postponement of examinations on Wednesday morning.

“I heard something about what had happened soon after sending my children to school and while switching on the television for news and wondering if I should call my husband to discuss with him whether we should bring back the children from school, there was that familiar honk at the gate. The pick-and-drop van had brought the children back on its own,” a housewife told Dawn.

Khalid Shah, chairman of the All Private Schools Management, said that they started informing the media since early morning that they were closing the schools due to the city’s tense situation. “I got on the phone soon after Fajr prayers and didn’t get off it till after 10.30am,” said Mr Shah.

“Since it is normal to turn on the TV for news, we notified about the sudden closure through tickers in the media. Many parents then also called their van drivers to bring the children back while some van drivers did that on their own after seeing the notices pasted on school gates. Some parents hadn’t even sent their children to school as yet and heard just in time while others quickly returned to take them back.”

About whether the schools would remain open on Thursday and whether there would be exams, Mr Shah said that they had decided to close the schools and postpone the exams for yet another day.

Meanwhile, Sharaf-uz-Zaman, chairman of the Private Schools Management Association, said that in view of the safety and security of students and the problems faced by parents due to the unavailability of transport also because of the closure of CNG stations and petrol pumps they had decided to keep the schools closed. “The papers postponed on Wednesday and Thursday will now take place after the end of the other papers,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 12th, 2015

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