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In late July, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced the government through the Higher Education Ministry will make changes to local public universities (IPTA) semester schedule so that Indian students can return to their hometowns to celebrate Deepavali on October 26 (Wednesday), 2011.
The announcement was made by Prime Minister when launching the 1Malaysia Indian Student Movement (1MISM) at Universiti Malaya on July 27 this year. Some other great news to the Malaysian Indian community announced that day was:
- Yayasan 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scholarships would be awarded to Indian graduates who obtained first class honours and come from lower income families to further their studies at Masters and PhD level.
- Vegetarian food will be made available at the local public universities in the future.
- Public universities would be providing buses to transport Indian students to temples on Friday evenings.
Depending on the state of the IPTA, undergraduates of all races will be enjoying five to six days Deepavali holiday (Cuti Sempena Hari Deepavali 2011)! Universities located in Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and Terengganu will resume classes on October 30 (Sunday) while others on October 31 (Monday).
October 25 (Tuesday) - Holiday starts
October 26 (Wednesday) - Deepavali 2011
October 30 (Sunday) / 31 (Monday) - Classes resume
At the time this post was written, the academic calendars of most local public universities have yet to be updated to reflect this change.
Have you bought your bus or flight tickets? How do you plan to spend your holiday? Let us know in the comment.
Diwali / Devali / Deepawali also known as Festival of lights |
Update 10/10/2011: Below is the official letter sent by Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) to all local public universities (IPTA) on September 15, 2011.
► Read more on Exclusive: IPTA Special Deepavali 2011 Holiday from October 25 to 28