Srinagar : Amid statements and counter statements by the government over reopening of schools from mid-June, the union Ministry of Home Affairs has asked the Jammu and Kashmir government for a feedback over reopening of educational institutions in the region within a week.
The development has prompted the Directorate of School Education Kashmir (DSEK) to ask wider consultations from stakeholders including field officers, school and village heads, parents and municipalities in this regard.
A communiqué issued Wednesday by the DSEK and addressed to all the Chief Education Officers has said that the MHA had on Saturday asked the J&K government to provide the feedback “within a week’s time for taking a final decision about opening of educational institutions in the country and asked for wide consultation to discuss the issues and concerns with all stakeholders”.
The DSEK has asked the respective CEOs to undertake “wider consultations at the institutional level with parents and other stakeholders like ZEOs, institution heads, Sarpanchs, Gram Panchayat, municipalities”.
The directorate has asked the CEOs to file a comprehensive report within three days positively about the feedback by the stakeholders over reopening the institutions along with their own comments.
The MHA, which recently allowed hotels, restaurants and shopping malls to reopen from June 8 under ‘Unlock 1’, maintained that the decision over reopening educational institutions will be taken in July after consultations with the stakeholders and once the union Health Ministry prepares te standard operating procedure in this regard.
Pertinently, the J&K government on Wednesday denied about having taken any decision on reopening schools from mid-June even as the School Education Department issued an order on Monday saying it “intends” to reopen the institutions from the said date.
The government U-turn came after union Minister of State, Jitendra Singh said he had asked the government to defer reopening of schools in J&K from mid-June.

Irshad Khan