Despite rapid impact of climate change on Pakistan, the Sindh Education Department continues to implement decades-old policies regarding the period for winter and summer vacations, which is adversely affecting millions of students of the entire province including Karachi.
According to the information obtained from the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the cold wave during the past few years come in January. In December, the cold wave either does not come or stays for a very brief period. The cold weather persists for a long period in January characterized by dry winds from Siberia and Quetta, causing blood thickening atmosphere especially in the evenings and mornings.
Despite the change in weather and climate, the winter vacations in schools and colleges are observed from December 22 to December 31. Millions of students resume school from January 1, when the real cold comes. Popular weather information websites accuweather and weatherpak as well as meteorological department itself consider January as the coldest month in Pakistan.
Recently this year on January 15, 2023, the temperature in Karachi was recorded at six degrees Celsius, which touched 4.5 degrees in the Airport and surrounding areas. It should be noted that Pakistan currently ranks 8th in the world among the countries most affected by the effects of climate change. Consequently, the intensity and duration of cold has increased and its period of occurrence has changed completely. According to an officer of the Meteorological Department, vacations for schools were rightly given in December in the past because December was a bit dry, while January was moist due to rains. Until the recent past, vacation in Decembers were meant to protect students from the effects of dry weather.
However, now the whole season is dry in winter, while January is colder compared to December, he said. The students of Sindh go to school shivering in the worst cold, risking their immunity. The higher incidence of diseases afflicted to students is reflected in decreasing attendance at educational institutions, especially schools. The Express Tribune also tried to get the opinion of Secretary School Education Sindh Ghulam Akbar Laghari in this regard, but no success. It should be noted that due to the severity of the cold, a notification has been issued by the department in which the schools have been obliged to start classes from 8:30am. However, the parents say that this is no less than a joke with the students. “If our children wake up half an hour late in the morning, will the cold be reduced?” they question.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ