Schools reopen in Jammu-Kashmir, record low student turnout

Only Police Public School at Bemina and a few Kendriya Vidyalayas saw a handful of students turning up, PTI reported.

“There is so much uncertainty in the situation that sending kids to school at this stage is out of question,” Farooq Ahmad Dar, a parent, said.

Officials in Baramulla district said schools in five towns remained closed. In the rest of the district, schools were opened, they said.

“There is no relaxation in restrictions in Pattan, Palhalan, Singhpora, Baramulla and Sopore towns. Primary schools in the rest of the district are open. We are collecting details about the number of students who have reported at their respective schools,” an official said.

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Officials in Baramulla district said schools in five towns remained closed. In the rest of the district, schools were opened, they said. (Express Photo by Shuaib Masoodi)

A senior Srinagar district official said a few schools on the periphery were opened but in the old city and in civil lines areas, they remained shut due to violence over the past two days.

Authorities had planned to open schools up to primary level and make all government offices functional from Monday.

In Srinagar city, barricades were removed from areas where the situation has remained peaceful since the Centre announced the scrapping of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated it into two union territories on August 5.

Markets in the Valley were shut while public transport remained off roads. The movement of private vehicles in the city increased after restrictions were eased.

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In Srinagar city, barricades were removed from areas where the situation has remained peaceful since the Centre announced the scrapping of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. (Express Photo by Shuaib Masoodi)

On Sunday, barring a few areas, the communications blackout continued across most parts of the Valley.

While fixed-line telephone connections in some areas of Srinagar and other parts of the Valley including tourist resorts were restored, major telephone exchanges in the region remain shut. And in Jammu, mobile Internet services in five of ten districts were suspended again, 24 hours after being restored.

The state has remained under an unprecedented communications blackout since August 5, when the Centre moved to end the special status of the state and bifurcated J&K into two Union Territories.

with PTI inputs

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