I APPRECIATE the decision of the authorities to start summer vacations for schools and colleges 15 days earlier. The decision was taken because of the continued likelihood of unusually high temperatures during Ramazan.

But schools and colleges are not the only educational institutions in Karachi. There are hundreds of public and private universities where many students would be fasting. Recently, a young student of an engineering university lost his life as a result of the heatwave. Other students fainted. Students requested that they be given a few days off, but didn’t get an appropriate response.

A few days’ leave will not surely be responsible even for a bit of loss to the studies of students, if the administration compensated for these days off by shortening annual vacations. Since a policy is practised in several countries during extreme weather conditions. Students cannot individually lobby for such exceptions.

I request the authorities to announce vacations during the heatwave for all public and private educational institutes in the city.

Shaheera Iqbal

Karachi

Published in Dawn, May 26th, 2018