HYDERABAD, Oct 11: A majority of district council on Wednesday supported a resolution calling for improvement in the quality of education in government-run schools and tightening the monitoring of private schools which charged heavy fees.

They also called for upgrading healthcare facilities in the civil hospital. The council session was convened by Naib Nazim Zafar Ali Rajput.

The resolution tabled by Nasir Baloch required the EDO of education and the director of private schools to ensure implementation of rules and regulations prescribed for private schools in the district and redress parents’ complaints about the heavy fee structure of private schools.

Mohammad Ehsan and Javed Qureshi called for monitoring private schools and said that people were compelled to turn to private institutions because of declining standard of education in government schools. They urged the district to take measures for improving quality of education in government schools.

Malik Rafiq demanded a ban on private schools’ associations and added that the teachers were not underpaid in private schools and only the poor were compelled to send their kids to government schools because they could not afford heavy fees.

Q Mohammad Hakim who runs a private school, defended fee structure of private schools on grounds saying “yes children will definitely be punished when their parents fail to pay fees. If fees are not paid how will schools maintain their administration and meet recurring costs.”

Mehboob Abro said that no one wanted to encourage private schools but the conditions in government schools were pathetic.

He complained that the district government was discriminating against Sindhi-speaking educational employees and referred to non-issuance of NOC to an SDO of education, Anwar Solangi.

In response Dr Arif Razmi informed that it was a uniform policy that any transfer from other district required the official to get an NOC from the nazim of the district he was transferred to.

Council’s education committee chairman Yousuf Mukhtiar, informed the session that the committee visited around 150 schools and helped suspend 200 ghost teachers who had been drawing salaries for several years.