Declare summer vacation in schools in view of deadly heatwave, demands Delhi Parents Association

NEW DELHI: Delhi Parents Association (DPA) on Monday wrote to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) demanding that the summer vacation be declared in city’s schools immediately in view of the deadly scorching heat.

A tormenting heatwave swept through the national capital and its neighbouring areas on Sunday with the mercury leaping to 49.2 degrees Celsius at Mungeshpur in northwest Delhi and 49.1 degrees Celsius at Najafgarh in the southwest parts of the city. Maximum temperatures reached unbearable highs of 48.4 degrees Celsius at Sports Complex, 47.5 degrees Celsius at Jafarpur, 47.3 degrees Celsius at Pitampura and 47.2 degrees Celsius at Ridge.

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"We call upon you to immediately declare summer vacations in schools without delay in view of the deadly heat scorching in Delhi. Many children are falling ill due to extreme heat. And the attendance of children in schools is decreasing," DPA president Aparajita Gautam said in the letter. "It is getting so hot in Delhi after 72 years. Yesterday, on 15 May 2022, the temperature in many areas of Delhi reached almost 50 degree Celsius. While some safety rules and suggestions were also issued by the Union Ministry of Education to protect the children, even the neighboring states changed the school timings. “But no such step was taken by the Delhi government. In the guidelines issued by the central government, it has been made clear that it is not safe for children to come out between 12-3 pm," she added.

Gautam noted that the main purpose of summer holidays is to save the children from the wrath of the heatwave. "We have been seeing for so many days that children are getting sick due to the ever-increasing heat and the attendance rate in schools is falling continuously. Therefore, in this view the schools should be closed immediately without delay and holidays are to be declared," she said.