Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani has said that schools will open on Monday just to collect matriculation students’ admission cards from the board.

The minister clarified that schools will open on Monday just for collection of admission cards. Regular classes will begin on March 16, he said. He urged the staff of both government and private institutions to ensure their presence at schools on March 9 and collect the admission cards from the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE).

Ghani also announced important dates for the upcoming academic year. He said the new academic year will begin on April 15. Summer holidays will begin on May 1 and end on July 15, he said. He said that from 2021, the new academic year will begin on April 1 and there will also be a change in the schedule for summer holidays.  In this regard, he directed the Sindh Textbook Board to ensure supply of textbooks to students in April.

Speaking of the rules and regulations regarding examinations, Ghani said that irrelevant persons should not be scene at examination centres. He said this ban should be extended to media persons and they should not be allowed to enter such venues.

He said that use of mobile phones, smartphones and hands-free will be prohibited at the exams. “Any phone that is found in possession of a student will be confiscated,” he said, adding: “Any teacher who is found facilitating students in cheating will be fired.”

The education minister said that any student caught cheating would not be allowed to sit the next paper. He said that a mechanism is being developed for security of examination papers.