Federal Minister for Education, Shafqat Mahmood has urged those universities that are still closed, despite official government permission, to reconsider their decision. In a post on Twitter, he delineated the importance of on-campus classes, stating how online lessons hardly serve as a suitable substitute.
“To those universities who are still not opening despite government permission, I have this to say; Online lessons however good are no substitute for on campus classes. Also interactions in the university mould social behaviour. They should reconsider, ” his tweet read.
Last week, the Punjab government shared a notification on the reopening of educational institutions, stating that these institutions are opening as per an earlier decision by the National Command and Operation Centre.
The notification detailed the opening of educational institutions and the standard operating procedures that are to be followed. Students will attend classes on alternative days with 50 percent attendance. The board examinations for SSC and HSSC students will be held in May and June.
Earlier, the federal education minister had held a high-level meeting on January 16 and decided that classes will start for students of grades nine to 12 from January 18. A one-week extension was granted to the grades one to eight students. They were to return to schools on January 25.
