Punjab announces winter vacations for schools across province

LAHORE: Punjab has announced winter vacations for government and private schools across the province, here on Monday.

According to details, Secretary Schools Punjab Khalid Nazir Wattoo said that schools will remain closed for 20 days from December 20, 2024 to January 10, 2025, during the winter vacations.

The announcement came after the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered to provide pick and drop services to school children after the winter vacations to deal with the increasing threat of smog.

These instructions were given by Lahore High Court Justice Shahid Karim in a three-page written order that he issued on Monday on petitions related to smog prevention.

The court ordered that children should go to school using the transport provided by the school administration.

The LHC bench warned that schools that do not comply with these orders will have to be sealed. It also remarked that no school should issue a written declaration absolving itself of the responsibility of transporting students.

The written order further said that the Punjab government informed the court about the steps taken to deal with the smog problem and several people have been arrested for burning parathas.

The department was also asked to create a comprehensive database of government and private buses.

Earlier, the Punjab government had further relaxed smog restrictions and allowed construction work in four districts including Lahore.

Construction work was stopped after smog peaked in the province about 10 days ago, causing hardship to the people.