Winter schooling: HC seeks Govt’s status report by Dec 30

Srinagar: The division bench of Jammu and Kashmir High Court Friday directed the government to file a status report about the heating arrangements for the winter schooling in the Valley.

The bench, comprising of Justice Hakim Imtiyaz Hussain and Justice Muzaffar Hussain Attar directed the government to file the report by December 30, sources told.

The order came on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking empowerment of Chief Education Officers to immediately cancel all the classes, where the schools are without space, buildings or windows.

The PIL was filed by Public Interest Litigation Forum convener, Advocate G M Wani and the respondents in the lawsuit are Secretary Finance Commission, government of India, the Secretary Education Department Jammu and Kashmir, the Director School Education Kashmir and the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir.

The winter schooling has drawn flak from various quarters and protests by student community have almost become a routine. However, notwithstanding the protests, the government continues with its decision of winter schooling in Kashmir for higher and secondary classes to compensate for the loss suffered by the learners in tumultuous summer this year.

There was hardly any schooling from June 11 till early October due to unrest that saw 11 people being killed allegedly at the hands of government forces.

Around 250,000 students of Classes 9, 10, 11 and 12 have been attending schools despite intense cold weather with temperatures falling to far below freezing point.

As per the government guidelines, all the government and private High and Higher Secondary schools of Kashmir valley have been directed to remain open during winter.

The functioning of private schools during the winter for high and higher secondary classes was made mandatory with the management of these institutions directed to make necessary and requisite arrangements for holding the classes.

However, there has been protest by many private schools, alleging inadequate facilities in their classes.