The school education authorities of Kashmir ordered a change in school timings from Wednesday owing to the changing weather and fall in temperatures.
From Wednesday, the classwork in government, as well as private schools of Kashmir division, will start an hour later than what was currently the timing.
The Directorate of School Education Kashmir (DSEK) in an order stated that the timing for schools falling under municipal limits of Srinagar district will remain from 10 am to 3 pm. While for the schools falling outside the municipal limits of Srinagar and belonging to other districts and areas of Kashmir province, the new timing was fixed as 10.30 am to 3.30 pm.
“All the concerned institutions must strictly adhere to the given orders and instructions, and any deviation in this regard will be viewed very seriously,” the order by the director of school education in Kashmir, said.
“The mornings are very chilly these days. The new timings are prompt but the school authorities need not to still force the students to arrive early for morning prayers. The duration of morning prayers should be curtailed,” said Mumina, a homemaker and mother of two children, hailing the move.
Earlier, the class work for government and private schools in Kashmir’s summer capital Srinagar would daily commence from 9 am to 3 pm.
The Kashmir valley is passing through the autumn season with cold mornings and evenings and foggy weather. The ski resort of Gulmarg had recorded the season’s first snowfall over its higher reaches on September 24. Since then, there have been intermittent rains and snowfall over higher reaches in October affecting the overall weather in the Himalayan valley.
The meteorological department of J&K has predicted rains and snowfall over higher reaches on November 02 and 03.
“The forecast is of generally cloudy weather with the possibility of light rain and snow over isolated to scattered higher reaches on November 02 and 03,” said director MeT, Mukhtar Ahmad.
Kashmir experienced significantly high temperatures in early September at most places of the valley with heat-wave to severe heat wave. The valley also witnessed a major deficiency in rainfall in August and September with summer capital Srinagar recording the lowest rainfall in 25 years in August.
