ISLAMABAD: TeleSchool Channel has gone on air across Pakistan on Tuesday to compensate the academic losses suffered by school students because of the lockdown imposed to control the spread of coronavirus.

Prime Minister Imran Khan formally launched the TeleSchool Channel, a joint project of Pakistan Television and Ministry of Education, in Islamabad.

Addressing the ceremony, he said the country was facing unprecedented situation in the wake of Coronavirus and the initiative would help children get education who were staying at homes because of closure of schools in the wake of Coronavirus.

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He said it was a brilliant concept and it should continue even after the opening of schools as it would help children residing in rural areas learn.

Minister of Education Shafqat Mahmood apprised the prime minister that 20 million children were out of schools and even many adult literates were also not able to read and write beyond their names. He suggested utilizing mobile phones for education and learning as well.

Meanwhile, the channel would be available on satellite, terrestrial and cable. The educational channel will beam programs from 8 am to 5 pm every day and would deliver content from grades 1 to 12.

In a series of tweets on Tuesday, Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan has said TeleSchool Channel would help promote literacy in the country.

She said the channel had been launched to benefit students from class one to twelve as formal educational process had been suspended due to Coronavirus outbreak. She said the channel would enable students to get education, while staying at homes.

Firdous said out of school children, who were unable to go to school for any reason, could also take advantage of the project. She said its transmissions could be viewed through satellite and antenna from eight in the morning to six in the evening.

She said children of far flung areas and students could benefit from this teaching and learning source.