ISLAMABAD - The federal and provincial governments were unable to reach a consensus on opening educational institutions from June 1st, during a meeting on Wednesday.
The Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference was held in the capital under the Chairmanship of Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mehmood to discuss the opening of educational institutions across the country.
Officials said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government pushed for opening educational institutions but the rest of the provinces, including Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and the centre, opposed the proposal.
The three provinces raised concerns about the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and suggested to continue the closure of schools till the situation becomes normal.
During the meeting, it was decided that the matter will now be presented in the meeting of National Coordination Committee (NCC) to be held tomorrow (Thursday). The meeting was conducted online in which all provincial education ministers, officials from federal and provincial education ministries and concerned departments participated.
Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mehmood said that government is aware of educational damage to the country but it cannot push students into a pandemic. He said the government is providing education to students through Tele-School transmission and trying to mitigate that academic damage. Earlier the government had decided to prolong the closure of all educational institutions, including schools, colleges and universities, across the country till May 31.