ISLAMABAD: Schools in Pakistan are set to have additional summer vacation days this year amid warnings the climate-vulnerable country could face severe and prolonged heatwaves. The disaster agency in the central province of Punjab advised the government to order the closure of schools earlier than June when pupils are normally let out for the summer. The government is expected to follow the agency's recommendation.
Many school buildings are not equipped with air conditioning. And the students' journeys to school in the intense heat pose their own health risks.
"This step will protect children from heatstroke and a possible outbreak of diarrhoea," disaster agency's chief Irfan Ali said.
The daytime temperatures in parts of the province with a population of nearly 130 million hovers around 50 degrees Celsius during the scorching summer months. — dpa
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