MUZAFFARABAD: Responding to growing public demands, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government has approved revised timings for state-owned and private educational institutions in view of the intensifying cold wave.

Effective until further notice, the new timings were set from Monday to Thursday and Saturday, 9am to 2:30pm, while on Friday, institutions were to function from 9am to 12:30pm, according to a notification issued by the Secretariat of Elementary and Secondary Education on Friday.

However, whether private educational institutions would comply with this directive or not remained uncertain, as many had a history of disregarding official guidelines on holidays and timings. Such non-compliance, particularly during extreme weather conditions, had often become a pressing concern for parents worried about their children’s well-being.

Meanwhile, civil society has also urged the government to issue additional directives exempting students from mandatory adherence to uniform-specific warm clothing during the severe cold.

They stressed that students should be allowed to wear any warm jacket, coat, or sweater to shield themselves from the biting cold, particularly in the northern districts of the state, where winter conditions were harshest.

Taking to social media, parents and social activists highlighted that the warm clothing included in most school uniforms was often substandard and inadequate for the region’s extreme cold.

“Lack of proper warm attire amid freezing temperatures adversely affects children’s health and concentration in classrooms. Ironically, the so-called warm uniforms fail to keep students warm. Instead of burdening already struggling parents, schools should allow students to wear any kind of warm sweaters, coats, and jackets over their regular uniforms during the ongoing and upcoming months,” wrote Abdul Wajid Khan, a prominent social activist, on social media.

Some parents also called upon school management to prioritise the safety and comfort of students by providing heating arrangements, particularly in schools located in high-altitude areas. They urged the relevant authorities to conduct inspections to ensure compliance with these measures, reinforcing claims that safeguarding the health and well-being of students remained a top priority for the government.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2024