25 December 2004	Saturday	12 Ziqa'ad 1425

KARACHI, Dec 24: The Sindh Education department has recommended regularization of about 3,000 schoolteachers, whose three-year job contract terminated last month, it was learnt officially.

Sources in the department said higher authorities in the department, after getting reports about teachers of grades 7 and 9 - appointed as JSTs and HSTs in 2001 - had in principle agreed to retain them.

The experience of appointment of teachers on contract basis had shown positive results, and it was likely that the entire lot of teachers in question, who had worked in rural and urban areas, would be regularized.

In view of reports from field offices that contractual teachers had been more punctual, serious and productive than most of the regular employees, the Sindh education department had two options with regard to their retention - either to regularize them or reappoint them on ad hoc basis.

When contacted, the Sindh Secretary for Education, Hashim Leghari, said the department had sent a summary to the chief minister for regularization of the teachers in question, as they had been beneficial.

Following the chief minister's approval, the teachers whose agreement had terminated would be called back for a regular job, and would thus enjoy benefits like other regular teachers.

To another question, he said that some schools that remained open during the winter vacations for holding internal or midterm examinations would not be questioned or issued any notice on the ground of violation of official order.

He said that schools had announced their schedule of examination prior to changes made in the winter vacation schedule by the steering committee of the education department. And as such, they were permitted to finish the leftover examinations and then observe the winter vacations.