NCOC may delay school exams, says minister

Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood on Friday said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) meeting on Monday would take major decisions regarding educational institutions, including resuming classes from January 11 and delaying examinations scheduled for March.

Talking to a delegation of the Supreme Council of the All Private Schools Associations, the minister said that the government stayed above politics while taking the decisions regarding educational institutions.

Mahmood told the delegation that a financial assistance package, including interest-free loans, for the private educational institutions had been prepared, which would be offered after its approval from the finance ministry.

In December, the government ordered online classes in educational institutions from 15th of last month and winter vacations from December 25 till January 10. The government had said at that time that the decision of resuming the classes would be taken in the first week of the New Year.

During the meeting on Friday, the representatives of the private schools insisted on opening their institutions from January 11. They took the position that the government should understand their problems and take steps to solve them.

The minister said that the government was aware of the issues being faced by the educational institutions because of the Covid-19 pandemic. He said that the decision to reopen the educational institutions would be taken by the NCOC on January 4.

“Closing the educational institutions was a tough decision. The education ministry did not take any decision on its own, in fact, the decision was taken after taking into consideration the data of the health ministry and its directives,” Mahmood said.

Referring to the detection of the UK coronavirus strain in Pakistan, the minister said that examinations scheduled for March this year could be postponed. Other matters to be decided in the meeting include reducing the duration of summer vacation and commencing academic session from August.

The education minister said that he has requested all the provincial educational ministers to meet the respective private schools associations, before the inter-provincial education ministers meeting next week.