Covid Surge: Madrasas to close until further notice
The government has decided that all residential and non-residential Qawmi and other madrasas will remain closed until further notice due to the alarming increase in Covid-19 cases in the country.
The education ministry in a gazette notification yesterday said that only orphanages would remain open.
It also said that some of the residential and non-residential madrasas were still open even after a lockdown was imposed in the country on Monday morning.
The week-long restriction was announced by the government to contain further spread of the coronavirus.
The ongoing closure of all educational institutions has been extended till May 22 due to the current spike in the infection rate that began in the last week of this March.
The government on March 17 last year closed all educational institutions to curb the spread of the virus. The closure led to cancellation of exams and left academic calendars in disarray.
But under a special consideration, and following the request from Qawmi madrasa authorities, the government allowed the reopening of Qawmi madrasas on August 24 last year.
The decision of the closure, which was taken by the government yesterday, came when Qawmi madrasa board authorities have been conducting Dawra-e-Hadith, a masters-equivalent exam, from April 3.
The exam, taken by about 30,000 students across the country, is expected to be completed by Thursday.
Maulana Nurul Islam, vice president of the Befaqul Madrasil Arabia Bangladesh, told The Daily Star they were yet to see a circular from the ministry regarding keeping all madrassas closed. "We will sit and think about it after receiving the order."
He added that only Dawra-e-Hadith exams are taking place. "All other academic activities have been halted in Qawmi madrasas."
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