Pune: A holiday has been declared by collector Jitendra Dudi on Monday for all schools in the city and in rural areas of the district, in view of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing a red alert for July 6 and warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall at some places and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated locations.As per the order, considering the possibility of extremely heavy rainfall and in the interest of public safety, all anganwadis and all primary, secondary and higher secondary schools of all mediums will remain closed. The decision has been taken giving priority to the safety of students, the order said.However, all headmasters, teachers and non-teaching staff have been directed to remain present during regular office hours and be prepared to carry out disaster management-related duties as per the instructions of the local administration.Meanwhile, the district administration has appealed to citizens to avoid unnecessary travel, stay away from rivers, streams, waterfalls and places with strong water currents, and strictly follow the advisories issued by the administration and the IMD.Similarly, the Lonavala Municipal Council (LMC) declared a holiday for all anganwadis, primary, secondary and higher secondary schools on Monday in view of the IMD rainfall forecast. The order, issued by LMC chief executive officer (CEO) Ashok Sabale, cited the weather department’s warning of heavy rain at several places and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated locations between July 5 and July 7, and a focus on student safety.Several private schools in Lonavla city also declared a holiday for the day and communicated the same to parents via text message.
