Sindh orders two-day weekend for all schools

ISLAMABAD: The Sindh government has approved a two-day weekend for all public and private schools, adding Saturday to the weekly holiday schedule as part of government austerity measures, officials said on Wednesday.

The decision, approved by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, will make Saturday and Sunday weekly holidays for schools across the province, a spokesperson for the Sindh Education Department said.

Under the revised schedule, teaching will take place from Monday to Friday, reducing the academic week to five days.

To offset the reduction in teaching days, daily school hours will be extended by one hour to ensure academic activities continue without disruption, the spokesperson said.

The education department said that the move was taken in line with the provincial government’s austerity measures and to ensure the more efficient use of available resources.

Last month, the Sindh government announced that all public and private schools across the province would operate six days a week from Aug. 1, issuing an official notification to implement the decision.

The notification said all educational institutions under the administrative control of the School Education and Literacy Department would observe a six-day working week, from Monday to Saturday, until further orders.

The decision came about a week after schools reopened following a two-month summer vacation that ran from June 1 to July 31.