Winter vacations start from today in 24 districts of Punjab

• Schools across 24 districts of Punjab will begin their winter vacations today. 
• Punjab government decides winter vacations' schedule on basis of smog level. 
• Other districts where the smog level is lower will observe their 11-day vacations from January 3. 

LAHORE: Winter vacations will begin today (Friday) in all educational institutions - public and private - across Punjab's 24 districts till January 6. 

Earlier this week, the Punjab government released a revised winter vacation schedule, with separate dates for various districts of the province based on the level of smog there. 

The districts where winter vacations will begin from today are Kasur, Sialkot, Narowal, Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Pakpattan, Sheikhupura, Okara, Vehari, Khanewal, Lahore, Khushab, Hafizabad, Multan, Lodhran, Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, Sargodha, Mandi Bahauddin, Sialkot, Nankana Sahib and Jhang, according to a notification issued on Tuesday by the School Education Department.

The 14-day winter vacation is being allowed in these districts as smog levels here are higher than in others.

There are other districts where vacations spanning 11 days have been announced from January 3-13. These districts are Jhelum, Mianwali, Attock, Muzaffargarh, Chakwal, Bhakkar, Rawalpindi, Rajanpur, Layyah, Rahim Yar Khan, Dera Ghazi Khan, and Chiniot. The immunisation campaign will continue in educational institutions in these districts in the meantime.

Also, universities — public and private — across the province will observe vacations from December 23 to January 6, as per the schedule announced by the provincial government. All universities under the jurisdiction of the Higher Education Department Punjab shall follow these dates for holidays, according to a notification issued by the Higher Education Department.

“All the concerned authorities shall ensure 100% vaccination of all teaching and non-teaching staff and students by the opening of institutions in the wake of an increasing number of the Omicron variant of COVID-19,” stated the notification.

“Non-vaccinated teaching, non-teaching staff, and students shall not be allowed to enter their concerned institutions.”

Earlier this month, the Lahore High Court (LHC), while hearing petitions related to environmental issues, had directed the provincial government to consider closing schools from December 20 keeping in view the rising levels of smog which is posing a health risk for citizens, particularly children, The News had reported.