Politics

Today, December 16, marks the start of the second phase of the third school term for all government and government-approved private schools and Pirivenas in Sri Lanka. The Ministry of Education had originally planned to begin this phase on December 8, but it was delayed due to the impact of Cyclone Ditwah. The second phase will run until December 22, followed by Christmas holidays from December 23 to December 28. Schools will then reopen for the third phase of the term on December 29 and continue until December 31, when academic activities for the third term will end. Students will have holidays from January 10 to January 20 to prepare for exams for the remaining subjects of the 2025 G.C.E. Advanced Level (A/L) examination. The second phase of the first school term in 2026 is scheduled from January 21 to February 13, with holidays from February 14 to March 2 for the G.C.E. Ordinary Level (O/L) examination. However, the Ministry of Education announced that 640 schools in three provinces will not open today. Nalaka Kaluwewa, the Secretary to the Ministry of Education, confirmed that schools in the Uva, Central, and North Western provinces will remain closed. Additionally, the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) has stated it will provide free transportation for schoolchildren in areas affected by the disaster for the rest of this year.