Odisha bandh: Educational institutes to remain closed on Monday

All schools, colleges and universities in Odisha will be closed Monday for student safety during a six-hour state lockdown called by Congress to protest rising fuel prices, a minister said. The authorities of technical institutes and industrial training centers will also not open their facilities for students on February 15, said Minister of School and Mass Education, SR Dash.

“The government has decided to close all educational institutes on Monday in view of the safety of the students during the bandh. Also, there will be no classes on February 16 for the Saraswati puja,” he said.

The government also announced on Monday the closure of all institutes of higher education and skills development departments, the minister said.

After a gap of roughly nine months, Odisha schools reopened their classrooms on Jan.8 to students who would soon appear for their board examination, amid strict adherence to COVID-19 guidelines.

The institutes also resumed physical classes for standards 9 and 11 students as of February 8.

Blaming both the Center and the Odisha government for the rise in gasoline and diesel prices, the president of the state Congress, Niranjan Patnaik, had said that the shutdown would start from 7 a.m. and continue until 1 p.m. .

All essential services, patient movements and marriages will remain outside the scope of the shutdown, he said.

Meanwhile, the BJD government has taken a number of measures to strengthen the security arrangement in and around the state capital to avoid any adverse incidents.

The government also advised its employees to arrive at their workplaces before 9:30 a.m. Monday, an official said.

The All Odisha Bus Owners Association also announced that its members’ passenger vehicles will remain off the roads until 1:00 pm on February 15.

Patnaik alleged that both the Center and the state government are imposing unreasonable taxes on gasoline and diesel, which has led to a sharp increase in fuel prices.

He said commodity prices soared due to rising fuel costs.

By stating that the closure will be peaceful, the congressional leader called on the people to support his call.

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