ISLAMABAD: With schools in Rawalpindi announcing holidays following the Punjab government’s decision to extend the winter vacation by almost a week, academic activities in educational institutions in Islamabad continued despite the harsh weather.

The Punjab government extended the winter vacation till Jan 12 in all public and private schools due to extreme weather conditions.

Talking to Dawn, parents requested Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood to look into the issue as nursery and primary students faced difficulty in getting to schools in the chilly conditions.

“In Rawalpindi, schools have been closed but in Islamabad where weather is more chillier there are no holidays,” said Safdar Ali, whose children go to a private school.

He said his son, who is enrolled in nursery, complained of headache and had flu.

In Islamabad, public schools are run by the FDE while private schools fall under the regulatory control of Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (Peira). Both these bodies fall under the administrative control of the education ministry.

Another parent, Mohammad Waqas, also said winter vacations should be extended.

The FDE runs schools after observing winter vacations resumed classes on Wednesday while private schools reopened on Monday.

When contacted, Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said FDE-run public schools and colleges reopened on Jan 1 and now it was difficult to announce more vacations.

He said as per the weather forecast, Wednesday will be the last day of the current spell of the chilly weather.

The minister said studies got disturbed “if we deviate from the education calendar”.

“There are weather issues all over the world, but life continues as per routine,” Mr Mahmood added.

However, the minister said if weather becomes unbearable in the coming days, the ministry can review its decision.

“At the moment, however, we don’t want to disturb the education timetable and calendar,” he said.

The FDE is supervising 423 schools and colleges in Islamabad while there are hundreds of registered and unregistered private schools in the capital.

Published in Dawn, January 8th, 2020