June 3, 2003	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 2, 1424

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LANDI KOTAL, June 2: Continued absence of teaching staff at various government schools in Landi Kotal sub-division of Khyber Agency has resulted in drop-out of students from these schools.

A survey conducted by this correspondent revealed that over 2,000 primary, middle and high school students had abandoned their studies due to the callous and indifferent attitude of the officials of the Khyber Agency education department.

The department has adopted a strange phenomenon of “detailment” to either appease or punish a teacher. A teacher having contacts in the Fata education department is detailed to his choice place irrespective of his original posting, while another is detailed to a far off school as a mark of punishment.

The detailment policy has resulted in the absence of a large number of teachers from their duties which has affected the quality of education. A sizable number of teachers belonging to Jamrud tehsil are posted in various schools in Landi Kotal. Acting in connivance with the officials of the education department, these teachers have managed to “detail” themselves to schools in Jamrud, thus abandoning their original post.

Frustrated by continuous absence of teachers, the students of Kharghali High School ransacked building of their school and blocked the Peshawar-Torkhum highway on May 5. The school is closed since then.

Students’ strength at Government Middle School Latif Khan Kaley has dropped to 150 from over 600. Talking to Dawn, a teacher of the school alleged that a senior English teacher Fazlur Rehman, CT teachers Noor Latif and Qarar and a religion teacher Ubaidullah were not attending their duties since long.

They have also managed to ‘detail’ themselves to Jamrud and were regularly drawing their monthly salaries, he claimed.

More than 500 students have dropped out from a high school at Mohammad Khan Kaley. At present, there are less than 350 students in the school.

At a primary school in Sheikhmal Khel village, the students’ strength has dropped to only 30 from 300 and at Malik Khwaizai Ashkhel Kaley only 35 students were left, out of the total 200 during the last three years due to absence of teaching staff.

In Kum Shalman there are only 30 girl students at primary school in Major (retired) Anwar Kaley. Only one lady teacher is presently posted at that school.

Two primary schools in Abdul Halim Kaley and Dost Mohammad Kaley are closed for more than five years due to want of teachers, while teachers posted at these schools regularly receive their salaries and have managed to “detail” themselves to schools of their choice close to their hometowns.

The indifference of the Khyber Agency education officials could also be gauged from the fact that residents of Hukam Khan Kaley in Sultan khel area have started cultivating vegetables in the courtyard of a girls primary school after being frustrated by the education department’s failure to appoint teachers in the school.

The school was established in 1995 along with two other girls schools at Arsala Khan Kaley Ashkhel and Gulab Noor Kaley Meerdad Khel. All are without teaching staff since then.

Around 50 girl students staged a sit-in in front of Arsala Khan Kaley school a few weeks back to register their protest against the absent staff. Two boys primary schools at Cheengai in Sheikhmal Khel and Ashqi Kaley in Meerdad Khel are also without teachers since their establishment in 1995.