KUALA LUMPUR — The Ministry of Education (MoE) will implement Home-Based Teaching and Learning (PdPR) should the Air Pollutant Index (API) reading surpass 200, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek announced today.
Speaking to reporters after officiating the 2024 national-level Digital Utilisation and Technology Awards (DUTA), Fadhlina said the measure is part of guidelines jointly established with the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry and the Health Ministry.
“Under the guidelines, outdoor activities are prohibited when the API exceeds 100. If it goes beyond 200, PdPR will be implemented, meaning lessons will be conducted online,” she said.
Fadhlina also confirmed that state education directors have been instructed to take immediate action based on local API levels.
As of 4pm today, the Department of Environment recorded an API reading of 116 in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, and 154 in Johan Setia, Selangor — both of which fall within the “unhealthy” category, especially for high-risk groups such as children, the elderly, and individuals with respiratory issues.
The API scale categorises readings between 101 and 200 as potentially harmful to sensitive groups, while values above 200 are considered “very unhealthy”.
The public is advised to monitor air quality through hourly updates from 68 monitoring stations nationwide via the Department of Environment’s official portal https://eqms.doe.gov.my/APIMS/main or by downloading the MyJAS EQMS app from Google Play or the App Store. — July 22, 2025