A relentless spell of heavy rainfall has plunged large parts of North India into a state of alert, prompting multiple state governments to order the closure of educational institutions for Monday.
The precautionary measure, enacted in response to red alerts and flood warnings from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), aims to ensure the safety of students and staff amid deteriorating weather conditions.
In Punjab, the situation has escalated significantly. The state government, which had already extended the closure of all schools until September 3 due to a prevailing flood situation, has now shuttered all higher educational institutions with immediate effect.
“Due to continuous heavy rainfall across Punjab since last night, all colleges, universities, and polytechnic institutes will also remain closed till 3rd September 2025,” announced State Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains in a social media post. He emphasized that the administration of these institutions is responsible for the well-being of students residing in hostels and urged the public to strictly follow guidelines from local authorities.
The flooding in Punjab, described as massive, has been caused by the swollen Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi rivers, which have overflowed due to heavy rain in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. Officials report that the worst-affected villages are in the districts of Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Fazilka, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, and Amritsar.
The disruptive weather is not confined to Punjab alone. The neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh, itself a source of the rainfall affecting downstream regions, is also bracing for impact. With the IMD issuing a red alert for heavy rainfall on September 1, authorities have declared a holiday for all educational institutions in Shimla, Solan, Sirmaur, and the Banjar, Kullu, and Manali sub-divisions of Kullu district.
Similarly, the Jammu region is experiencing severe weather, with continuous rains leading to landslides and flood alerts. In response, all government and private schools and colleges will remain closed on Monday as a safety measure.
Further west, the Uttarakhand government has also declared a one-day holiday for all government, semi-government, and private schools from Classes 1 to 12, as well as Anganwadi centres, in several districts following the IMD’s warning.
The coordinated shutdown across these states underscores the severity of the weather system affecting the region, with administrations prioritizing citizen safety in the face of potential natural hazards.