ISLAMABAD: All educational institutions across Pakistan have been closed from Thursday till January 10, 2021 to contain the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has claimed nearly 7,800 lives and infected over 3.8 lakh people in the country.

The decision was taken in a meeting of the Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC), chaired by Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood on November 23. It was decided in the meeting that schools would be closed from Thursday until December 24 due to spike in COVID-19 cases and from December 26 to January 10, 2021 for winter holidays.

The students will continue their studies online till December 24, followed by winter vacations, and the school reopening is scheduled for January 10, according to the official.

The final decision to reopen schools in January will be based on an evaluation by related authorities, and if the coronavirus epidemic is under control, education activities will be resumed, according to the minister.

According to sources, the COVID-19 infection ratio in schools has surged to over 3 percent from 1 percent previously during the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

It is the second time for the country to close schools in order to curb the spread of COVID-19. Classes were suspended nationwide from March 13 to September 15 during the first wave of the outbreak. NNI