Schools In Northeast Delhi To Remain Shut Till March 7 In View Of Violence

Schools will remain closed in northeast Delhi till March 7 in view of the communal violence, officials said on Saturday. The annual examinations have also been postponed since the situation is not conducive for conducting examinations in violence-affected areas, according to officials.

Schools have been closed in northeast Delhi and east Delhi for since Monday. The Central Board of Secondary Examination (CBSE) has postponed board exams in the area till February 29. The communal violence in northeast Delhi sparked by protests over the amended citizenship law has so far claimed 42 lives and left over 200 people injured.

Frenzied mobs torched houses, shops, vehicles, a petrol pump and pelted stones at locals and police personnel. Jaffrabad, Maujpur, Babarpur, Yamuna Vihar, Bhajanpura, Chand Bagh and Shiv Vihar are among the areas severely affected by the riots.

Also Read | Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal Announces Immediate Relief Of Rs 25,000 To Violence Victims

As people gingerly stepped out for work and opened shops and other establishments in northeast Delhi, anxiety escalated outside the Guru Teg Bahadur(GTB) hospital where people waited outside the mortuary to receive the bodies of their loved ones. Police and paramilitary personnel also maintained a strict vigil in view of the Friday prayers at mosques.

The maulvis of the mosques in riot-hit areas appealed for peace and harmony and put out announcements asking people not to fall prey to rumours and cooperate with police.

Also Read | Delhi Riots: How This Small Hospital In Violence-Hit Mustafabad Offered Refuge to Victims

While civic workers swept the streets and bylanes of northeast Delhi littered with bricks, broken glass and other detritus of three days of communal clashes, some shopkeepers sorted through the charred remains of their vandalised and burnt shops.

Shops and other establishments opened in some places and more private vehicles were seen on roads. Autos and e-rickshaws also began plying in some areas as people stepped out of their homes to get back to work or catch up on essential errands.

Officials also said they were making extra efforts to quell rumours, and were holding regular flag marches and interactions in the neighbourhoods of affected areas as confidence-building measures.

(With PTI inputs)