‘NCOC decides to shift winter vacations to January’

ISLAMABAD: The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has decided to shift the winter vacations for educational institutions to January from December, in a meeting held on Wednesday, sources confirmed to Geo News.

Sources further said that the decision was backed by all provinces, who agreed to the proposal. "The decision was taken in line with the recommendations forwarded during the inter-provincial education ministers conference," they said. NCOC sources said the vaccination process will carry on in educational institutions, adding that educational institutions will remain closed in areas where heavy snowfall takes place.

A meeting of all the education ministers was held on Tuesday to discuss whether winter vacations can be shifted from December to January in educational institutions due to several issues.

The Government of Sindh has already announced winter vacations from December 20, 2021 to January 3, 2022. Federal Ministry of Education, in a handout issued Tuesday, said recommendations for winter vacations suggested by all the provinces were under consideration and a "final decision will be taken at tomorrow's (Wednesday) NCOC meeting."

Meanwhile, all provinces and textbook boards were directed at the meeting of the inter-provincial education ministers to publish the cabinet-approved political map of the country in the textbooks.

"Before this, different maps were being published in different provinces," the statement said. Educational institutions have already been teaching the new political map of the country, which was introduced by the federal government a couple of years ago, essentially asserting its longstanding position on the Kashmir and Sir Creek issues.