New Delhi: Schools in Kashmir reopened on Monday (February 24, 2020) after being shut for 7 months since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. The government had tried to reopen all the schools in November 2019 but only a few of them could be reopened.
Usually, the winter vacation in Kashmir is for three months, but the students have been away from schools since August 2019.
Students and teachers in the schools are excited to start the new session after the winter holidays. They had been preparing to attend the schools for a very long time as they have lost a lot of time due to the closure since August 2019. The students do not want to lose any more time by missing their schools.
"We are extremely excited as we have lost a lot of time. We are in class 11 and had been preparing for the reopening of schools," said, Nida Tariq, a student of class 11. Her sentiments were echoed by another student Gazan Manir. "I can't believe that we are going to school, we had forgotten about schools in last 7 months and I have been preparing for this for more than a month. What we learn in school, we cannot learn anywhere else."
A few more students, too, shared their plans. "I'm very happy that we are in school today, school is a different environment and is a unique experience. If the situation remains normal, the schools will remain open," asserted Tehra.
"We are scared when the situation is tense. But the schools have reopened now, " stated another student Hadika.
Not just the students, but the teachers were also prepared for the schools. Many teachers had been coming to the schools for the last one week to ensure that everything was ready for the students.
"Every child wants to study and we have very talented students. Our students are ready and we are also prepared," opined Rabiya Rehman, a school teacher.
Dilbar Singh, another teacher, said, "We are very happy to see our students back. The schools were deserted for the last seven months. We want more and more students to attend schools and ensure a better future."
The government announced that the timings for schools falling within the Srinagar municipal corporation will be from 10 am to 3 pm. Whereas, schools in the rest of Kashmir Valley will be from 10:30 am to 3:30 pm.
