Bangladesh has extended the shutdown of educational institutions, except madrasas, till October 3 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the education ministry has said. Schools, colleges, universities and other educational institutions were ordered to close since the first cases of COVID-19 appeared in March. The shutdown has been extended several times since then. "The ongoing holiday for all educational institutions, except Qawmi madrasas, has been extended to Oct 3 because of the global coronavirus pandemic," bdnews24 quoted the education ministry as saying on Thursday.

Qawmi madrasas operate without any government monitoring, supervision or support. They run with private donations mostly. The government has also suspended the primary education completion and equivalent examinations this year due to the coronavirus crisis, the bdnews24 report said. According to a report in Dhaka Tribune, the government has been running a distance-learning program through TV for schools and colleges. Classes are taking place on Facebook and YouTube for primary and secondary-level students as well.