EVER since the day militants stormed the Army Public School Peshawar and massacred 136 innocent students and 16 staff members, tens of thousands of students have been forced to stay home on an extended winter vacation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The December 16 tragedy shocked the entire nation and millions of people were left heartbroken, but the government is not doing a good job of dealing with the aftermath of the situation.

In one such act in 2004, militants also held hostage over 300 people in a school in Beslan, Russia, and they were held hostage for three days. In the end 330 people died. The then Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a three-day mourning. After the end of the mourning period, children started going back to school even in Beslan.

Here students in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were at homes for nearly a month. The government should increase security around the schools as students can’t study if they feel insecure. This is the right time for the government to prove itself and work out proper security protocol for schools and other educational institutions. All political parties should stand united in this hour of need. After all education is the key to success.

If students get unscheduled holidays, it can badly affect them and their studies. They would forget all their lessons. Once they come back to schools their minds would be literally empty. They would not remember a single word.

Many schools were having examinations when this tragedy occurred. A few schools gave their students homework for the holidays, but all schools didn’t do the same. A lot of time has been wasted. And now, finally, when schools have reopened, I am sure all the students must be glad to get back to their studies. Though the victims of the Army Public School are in our thoughts and prayers, we are happy to get back to our normal school life, and I am sure that is what these martyrs must have wanted too.