Pak Army chief, students sing national anthem as Peshawar school hit by Taliban reopens

Peshawar: Limping towards normalcy, the army-run Peshawar school which was ravaged by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan nearly three weeks ago resumed its classes on Monday.

Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif received the students and met the parents at the school. He also attended a commemorative service held at the school and sung the national anthem in honour of those who lost their lives during the terror attack. The attack on December 16 had claimed 148 lives, including 132 school children.

Meanwhile, the structure of the school has been renovated while the cleansing work has also been completed. Vacations in all educational institutions across the country were extended due to security reasons. After enhancement of security measures these educational institutions resumed classes on Monday.

The provincial government had to face criticism by educationists over its failure to announce a final date for the reopening of local schools, saying the extension in winter vacation had been adversely affecting the studies of school children.

The schools were given no objection certificates after they fulfilled the basic security criteria such as installation of CCTV cameras and construction of higher boundary walls across the campus.