Schools reopen after winter break in Amritsar district

Attendance in government schools remained thin as a few students braved through foggy and frosty conditions in the morning to reach their institutions post winter break. All government schools re-opened today for Classes V to XII after the extended winter break.

In the district, there are around 1,200 schools (Both government and private), out of which a majority of institutions in the rural areas saw extremely low attendance in comparison to schools in the urban areas.

With morning temperature hovering between 5°C and 7°C and dense fog reducing the visibility considerably on roads in the district, teachers shared that it was likely that students would wait for another two to three days to come back to schools in full strength.

“Most of parents, whose wards study in government schools, have demanded an extension in the winter break in the wake of the biting cold conditions. With that now happened, it is still quite chilly for students to return to schools, even with changed school timings. We are hoping that schools will have full student strength post Lohri,” said a teacher from the Government Senior Secondary Smart School, Pandori Waraich.

Unlike government schools, majority of private schools in the city remained closed for the winter break and would open only after January 14. With extreme cold conditions prevailing, schools in Chandigarh have extended winter break till January 11, while schools in the neighbouring state of Haryana would open for Class VII onwards after January 14.

Another factor to consider is an announcement for the board exam date sheet by the Punjab School Education board (PSEB). For Class VIII and Class XII boards, the exams would commence from February 19, while for Class X, the PSEB boards would begin from March 10. Teachers want students to come to schools at the earliest without any extension in holidays as they had to finish the syllabus by then.