In Kazakhstan, they quarreled over the need to change time zones

In Kazakhstan, they quarreled over the need to change time zones



Children return from school in the dark

Kazakhstan is discussing the change of time zones. Now the time difference between the western and eastern regions of the country is one hour. The issue sparked a heated debate among residents. Some say that it is inconvenient for them to live out of step with the capital. Others remind: any changes can be harmful to health. About whether the country needs such changes, "MK" talked with an expert.

“We have to go to bed earlier in the evening, as it is already dark at 10 pm. Even walking is already dark, especially for children. That is, we do not live in accordance with the natural time zone. Maybe this can be fixed, ”the local newspaper Alau quotes pensioner Valentina from the Aktobe region.

Now there are 2 time zones in Kazakhstan: UTC +5, which includes the western regions, and UTC +6, the eastern regions. This distribution was adopted in Soviet times and has not changed since then.

Although many residents are sure that it is easier to live in a country with one time zone. Indeed, such a reduction of hours has a lot of advantages: residents can plan trips, state institutions will open at the same time, and on New Year's Eve, the whole country can watch the chimes. But there is a flip side - physiological. Many residents find it difficult to adjust to the new time. But even here the supporters of the initiative have their own arguments.

So, in 2021, residents of the Kostanay region turned to the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan with a request to investigate the effect of the “wrong time zone” on the body. The problem worsened in 2005 when the government abolished the annual daylight savings time.

“Our region does not live in its own time zone, that is, two hours ago. Children now get up at seven in the morning, in fact it is five in the morning. There are somnologists, but we don't have them in Kostanay. Could the Ministry of Health conduct a study on how this affects? - Natalya Koloskova, head of the Raduga public association of parents of disabled children in Kostanai, addressed the department. However, the situation has not changed since then.

Political scientist Chingiz Lepsibaev, in a conversation with MK, noted that the likelihood that the authorities would take such a step was extremely small. Although the initiative has just begun to be considered at the state level, having organized consultations with specialists.

- In fact, there are two opposite points of view on this matter. Of course, from an economic point of view, it would be convenient to have one time zone, but from the point of view of physiology and everything else, it is better to leave it as it is. Now the country has different working hours of state institutions, it is not convenient to travel by train and recalculate the time every time. But, on the other hand, everyone has long been accustomed to this and adapted. It seems unlikely to me that the authorities would take such a step. Too many costs and it's not entirely obvious which would be better. But here, of course, economists should give an assessment.



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