Ludhiana: Students skip school amid confusion about holiday
Even though the central government had announced a two-day mourning period on Tuesday night, the state government has announced only Thursday as a holiday
Confusion prevailed among students and teachers on Wednesday due to a lack of clarity regarding a holiday as a mark of respect to former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on his demise. This led to a 10 to 20 percent dip in attendance at various government schools.
Even though the central government had announced a two-day mourning period on Tuesday night, the state government has announced only Thursday as a holiday. A notice regarding the same came out on Wednesday at 9 am.
Requesting anonymity, a government school teacher said that some schools as well as students thought that schools will remain shut Wednesday. He added that many principals had posted the same in their official groups, only to revise it later. He added that as practical exams were underway at government schools and students were seen rushing to schools after they realised that the schools weren’t closed on Wednesday.
District education officer Harjit Singh said that a dip in attendance was recorded at schools due to this confusion but teachers were present at all government schools in the district held and classes were held.
A number of schools, private and government, had communicated to the students on Tuesday night that school will remain closed on Wednesday. Many private schools in the city, including DAV Public School in BRS Nagar, branches of Sacred Heart Convent School and Amrit Indo-Canadian School observed a holiday.
