April 02, 2008	Wednesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 24, 1429

ATTOCK, April 1: The executive district officer of special education of Rawalpindi Mrs Nusrat Najeeb has said that special people should be given respectful status in the society.

“Special people should be given priority in the society, because they are as intelligent, hardworking, courageous and competent as normal people,” she said while speaking at a uniform distribution function here at Deaf and Defective Hearing School.

Besides representatives of NGOs, educationist, parents, and social figures, Principal Blind School Attock Mrs Salma Khatoon and Headmistress Deaf and Defective Hearing School Attock Mrs Najma Shaheen were also present on the occasion.

Mrs Najeeb said that government and special education department were taking personal interest in their education and utilising all their resources to provide better facilities in the special children institutions.

She claimed that special education department was providing all educational facilities and assistance to the special students schools besides resolving their other problems on priority basis.

She appreciated the performance of Deaf and Defective Hearing School in providing standard education-cum-welfare facilities to the special children and their rehabilitation as it is not an easy task.

She also assured the society that maximum support would be provided to the welfare and education of special children besides resolving the school’s problems on priority basis. She urged the philanthropists to come forward for this noble cause and should extend their corporation to the school.

Speaking on the occasion, Principal Mrs Najma Shaheen said with the active assistance of the government and civil society organisations, better education environment and facilities are being provided to the special children of both institutions. She hailed the efforts of teaching staff in educating the special children in proper manner and urged the government to announce pride of performance for educationists of both schools in recognition of their services for the special students.

She said that government couldn’t provide every facility that requires in imparting education to special children in schools and the community should share the responsibility in this regard.

She appealed to the rich and elite figures to come forward and provide all possible resources and help, so that special person could play an active role in the society. Mrs Najma also highlighted the salient features of her institution.