Ghaziabad: The district administration drew criticism on Thursday after declaring a rain holiday for all schools from nursery to Class 12 only after 7am, when many students had already left home or reached their campuses. The order came in response to heavy rainfall and widespread waterlogging that disrupted movement across the city.Several schools had to send students back shortly after they arrived, while parents questioned the delay in issuing the advisory despite overnight forecasts of heavy rain. School authorities said an earlier decision could have prevented unnecessary travel in hazardous conditions.In neighbouring Noida, the district administration did not announce a blanket closure. Instead, several private schools adjusted class and dispersal timings as flooded roads and traffic congestion delayed buses and extended students’ commute home.Most schools in Ghaziabad begin classes between 7.30-8am , and buses start operating from around 6am.“Students usually enter the school by 7.50am. Such an abrupt closure notification disrupted the entire day’s schedule. The administration should ideally have issued the order on Wednesday evening. Sending children back home at short notice, especially when many parents are working, became a logistical challenge. While senior classes were conducted for half a day, the junior section was immediately sent back. From Friday onwards, the school will run online for this week,” said Seema Jerath, principal of DLF Public School in the city.Several areas of Ghaziabad witnessed heavy showers through Wednesday night and Thursday morning, with commuters reporting long traffic snarls during peak hours due to inundated stretches and slow-moving vehicles. Officials said the closure was a precautionary measure to minimise inconvenience and ensure student safety as the spell of rain continued.
Many vehicles got stuck in potholes on heavily flooded roads in Indirapuram
Monika Mehan, principal of DAV Public School in Sahibabad, said that nearly 40% of their students were already on buses or had reached the campus by the time the order was issued. Teachers and staff had also reported for work.“Many working parents had already dropped their children at bus stops and left for their offices. In such circumstances, it became extremely difficult to send children back immediately. We had no option but to continue classes for the senior wing, while the junior section, whose reporting time was later, was informed in advance. Attendance remained thin, but the school had to remain operational. From Friday onwards, we have shifted to online classes,” Mehan added.Parents echoed these frustrations.Ghaziabad resident Rita Vansal said that most roads in Sahibabad and Raj Nagar were heavily waterlogged. By the time she received the message about the school closure, her son was already halfway to school.“I had to work from home because I wasn’t sure whether he would be sent back or stay in school. There was complete confusion. If the administration was planning to declare a holiday, it should have taken the decision much earlier instead of issuing the order after students had already left home,” she said.“The issue is not that schools were closed, but that the decision came too late. Parents kept calling the school to find out whether children would stay back or be sent home early. It created unnecessary anxiety. During extreme weather, authorities should issue such advisories the previous evening or before school buses start operating so that both schools and parents can plan accordingly,” said Vivek Tyagi, president of All Parent Association, Ghaziabad.
A School bus broke down due to waterlogging near Mahamaya Underpass in Sector 44, Noida
In Noida, there was no district-wide holiday announced, but several private schools revised their schedules in response to traffic congestion caused by rain. Some schools advanced dispersal timings, while others informed parents about early closure to ensure children could return home before roads became more congested.“My son reached home almost one and a half hours late on Wednesday. He usually returns by 3pm or 3.30 pm, but reached around 4.30pm because of severe traffic near Sector 62. On Thursday, the school informed parents that classes would end at 12.30pm due to the inclement weather and prevailing traffic conditions,” said Amit Dubey, whose son studies at Billabong High International School in Noida.
