Educational institutes to remain closed till July 15: Shafqat Mahmood



Because of the ongoing coronavirus crisis, the government decided to close educational institutes until July 15 while canceling council examinations until the end of this year.

Minister of Education Shafqat Mahmoud addressed the media after today's National Coordination Committee session.

Matric, intermediate exams cancelled
In his speech, the minister said that the government had previously decided to close educational institutions until May 31, but then agreed to an extension until mid-July.

Mahmoud said that due to the ongoing crisis, boardroom exams for the ninth to middle grades (twelfth grade) will not be taken.

He said that students will be promoted on the basis of recent years' exams, adding that on this basis, students will be admitted to universities during their middle-year results.

"Declined" government decision

The head of the Pakistani Schools Association, Kashif Mirza, said they reject the government's decision to close educational institutions until July 15.

He said teachers ’salaries are fixed and more than 90 percent of schools work in rented buildings.
Mirza said that the Prime Minister should announce the "educational relief package" for schools.
He said the government should allow schools to reopen as of June 1 and announce standard operating procedures in this regard.

Closing will be eased from Saturday

Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Thursday that the government had decided to ease the closure in the country given its impact on the economy.

Cancellation of board exams
"We decided to open the country in a gradual way from Saturday, and now it is the responsibility of the masses to follow the rules, otherwise we will have to reverse the decision."

Prime Minister Imran said, “I was in favor of allowing public transportation, but the governorates did not. Therefore, it was decided that the provinces would develop their own standard operating procedures (SOPs) and share them with the center.

Prime Minister Imran said that the government announced a relief package worth 1.2 trillion rupees, which is "the largest in the history of Pakistan."

For his part, Dr. Faisal Sultan, Prime Minister's Coordinator for Coronaviruses, said that the committee members are consulting with colleagues from all over the world and asking for their contributions to develop policies accordingly.

"We are closely monitoring global trends. The course of cases is slow, but we do not want to ease restrictions so that we lose control of the disease."

Earlier on Wednesday, the NCC proposed loosening restrictions after 9 May.