26 October 2004	Tuesday	11 Ramazan 1425

PESHAWAR, Oct 25: NWFP Senior Minister Sirajul Haq said on Monday that the provincial government was giving top priority to the promotion of education and taking revolutionary steps in this regard despite financial constraints.

Speaking at public gatherings after the inauguration of the Centennial Girls Higher Secondary School and inspection of a polytechnic institute and other development schemes in Timergara, the minister said the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal faced propaganda of gender discrimination but its government had taken steps for improving the educational and socio-economic conditions of women.

He said the increase in the number of universities, colleges and other educational institutions in the private and public sectors, establishment of a women's university, a girls medical college, a medical university and vocational institutes, increase in teaching staff, improvement of academic facilities and arrangement of resources for adult education centres were testimony of the government's performance.

He said the pace of development in the province had been accelerated through strict financial management despite meagre resources and reforms of far reaching impact had been introduced in the social sector, which could contribute to improving the standard of living of the people.

However, he alleged, the centre, instead of helping in speedy development and industrialization in the NWFP, was creating hurdles for the provincial government.-PPI