KARACHI: The Sindh Education Department on Saturday announced revised school timings, ordering all public and private schools to open at 9am while keeping closing hours unchanged.
According to an official notification, the decision will come into effect from Monday, January 12, and continue until January 26, amid a severe cold wave across Sindh.
The Education Department revised the school timings on the instruction from Education Minister Sardar Shah, read an X post from the Minister Education and Literacy Government of Sindh.
Sources had earlier said that the move was prompted by the intensifying cold wave affecting the province.
While Sindh keeps schools open, Punjab has extended winter vacation for all educational institutions.
In a statement earlier today, Punjab Minister for Education Rana Sikandar Hayat said that the winter holiday for all educational institutions was extended by a week due to cold weather.
Hayat said the decision was taken in view of the severity of the weather and the health of students.
He added that around 87% of respondents in the public survey supported an extension in the holidays, while approximately 13% were in favour of reopening schools on January 12.
Karachi has also experienced a drop in temperature, with the city recording the coldest night of the ongoing winter season on the midnight of Thursday and Friday, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).
The Met Office said the lowest temperature in the city was recorded at Jinnah Terminal, where the mercury dropped to 7.1 degrees Celsius, marking the coldest reading of the ongoing winter season so far.
