As temperatures rise and the summer heat becomes more intense, several states across the country are making changes to school timings and announcing early summer vacations, bringing relief to millions of schoolchildren. Additionally, due to the second phase of Lok Sabha elections, several districts in Uttar Pradesh have ordered schools to remain closed for two days. Let’s take a closer look at which states are implementing school closures and which districts are adjusting school timings.
Changes in School Timings in These Districts
In Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia district, changes have been made to school timings due to the heatwave. Classes from 1st to 8th will now be conducted from 7:30 AM to 12:30 PM, effective from April 24. The order for changing school timings was issued by District Basic Education Officer Manish Kumar Singh.
In Agra, due to severe heat and heatstroke concerns, District Magistrate Bhanu Chandra Goswami has altered the timings for all government, non-government, private, and missionary schools. Starting from Wednesday, all schools will run classes from 7 AM to 12:30 PM. During this period, all educational and other activities on school premises will be prohibited. All teachers and school staff engaged in Lok Sabha election duties will continue their duties as per previous instructions.
In Jharkhand, in light of rising temperatures, classes for kindergarten to 8th grade students will be held from 7 AM to 11:30 AM until April 30. Students from 9th to 12th grade will attend classes until 12 PM in the afternoon.
School Closures in These Districts
In Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, schools will remain closed on April 25 and 26 due to polling for the Lok Sabha elections 2024. Voting will take place on April 26, and as a result, government, private, and missionary schools will be closed for two days. Most principals, teachers, and other staff of government, council, and aided schools in Mathura are on election duty. Hence, a two-day holiday has been declared.
In Gautam Buddh Nagar Lok Sabha constituency, polling will take place on April 26. Therefore, the Basic Education Department has made all schools and colleges in the constituency polling centers. Teaching activities in schools will be suspended on April 24 and 25 due to safety concerns and potential inconvenience to students during the election process. Additionally, there will be a public holiday on April 26 due to polling.
In the second phase of elections in the Meerut-Hapur Lok Sabha constituency on April 26, all schools and colleges will be polling centers. Therefore, teaching activities in schools will be suspended on April 24 and 25 as a precautionary measure. On April 26, a public holiday has been declared in schools due to polling.
Summer Vacation Announcement in Odisha
To safeguard children’s health amid rising temperatures, the Odisha government has announced summer vacations for all schools in the state starting from April 25. From April 22 to 24, schools were running from 6:30 AM to 10:30 AM. Earlier, the state government had announced a holiday between April 18 and 20 due to the heatwave, and now, summer vacations have been declared.
As temperatures soar across the country, authorities are taking proactive measures to ensure the well-being of students and school staff. By adjusting school timings and announcing holidays, they aim to minimize the impact of the scorching heat on students’ health and safety.