May 21, 2008	Wednesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 15, 1429

LAYYAH, May 20: Several primary schools in this district are in an utter state of neglect --- lacking basic infrastructure and facing shortage and absence of staff.

This correspondent visited a number of schools to see the fruits of the Parha Likha Punjab programme of the outgoing PML-Q government.

Darbar Khaliqwala Primary School, Union Council-168, has a lone teacher for 250 students. Its classes are held virtually in the adjacent graveyard as the one-room school building and lawns are not serviceable.

The solitary room of the school was constructed in 2004 and in just three years, its condition dilapidated to the extent that the teacher and his pupils had to abandon it for their safety.

Adnan Masood teaches students from Class I to Class V simultaneously. There is no chair even for the lone teacher to sit on. He sits on a cot (charpoi) and teaches 77 students of Prep Class and 55, 18, 29, 20 and three of Class I, II, III, IV and class V, respectively.

He seldom uses the only blackboard, which was purchased on self-help basis, to educate students coming from localities within a radius of five kilometres of the school.

The sun shines through the leaves, casting shadows on the lawns of graveyard next to the school building, providing opportunity to students to continue their studies with frequent interruptions. They shift their classes as shadows keep on chasing the sunlight.

No high-up of the education department, any local government representative or member of the Punjab or National Assembly has ever bothered to visit this school during the past four years. Ghulam Muhammad Gurmani, a deputy district education officer (DDEO), did visit the school on March 21, 2007 and while writing down his remarks in the visitor’s register, he declared the only classroom dangerous for students and teachers.

The Government Primary School, Sumandarwala, is another identical example — one-room school building and lone teacher. However, nowadays a new block is being constructed but the contractor has occupied the existing classroom to store building material there, leaving 127 students to attend classes in the open.

Students try to find some respite from the scorching sun by intruding into the one-room building veranda, but it is not spacious enough to accommodate all.

Its only teacher, Abdul Qayyum, told Dawn that the education department had replaced the contractor after receiving complaints that he was using substandard material. He said this replacement had caused delay in the construction of the new block and they were forced to face all kinds of weather. The school does not have electricity.

The Latif Arrain Girls Primary School, established on Dec 26, 1993, was found locked when this correspondent visited it. A neighbour, Azam, told Dawn that two teachers were posted there but they never attended the school as they were residents of Layyah city, some 40 kilometres away from the location, and they found it hard to attend their school regularly.

Girls Primary School, Chak 172/TDA, is yet another institution that has been left deserted. The condition of boys primary school of the same village is also not different, with building abandoned by students owing to its run-down condition. Farooq Ahmad, the lone teacher posted there too, was on leave and his pupils were having fun under the shadows of trees.

Government Girls School, Ameer Klasra Sharki, built recently with millions of rupees was also found locked. The school is non-functional for the past three months.

When the education department posted a female teacher there, around 50 girls of the village got themselves enrolled in just a week’s time but after some time the teacher was transferred without any replacement, leading to its closure.

The one-room school of Peer Jagi Bairune in the vicinity of MNA Peer Saqlain Shah’s residence was also found locked and abandoned.

Talking to Dawn, prominent educationist Ch Nazeer Ahmed expressed his concern over the pathetic condition of infrastructure and absenteeism of teachers in government schools. He demanded a thorough probe to determine the number of skiving teachers in as many as 1,550 government-run schools in the district.

Regarding the closure of various schools and absenting teachers, DDEO Gurmani said that various other departments, including district monitoring teams and supervisors, were involved in keeping a check on this practice and the education department alone was not responsible. However, he said, they were trying their level best to ensure teachers’ presence.

District Officer (Education) Attaur Rehman said that he was appointed recently — not more than two weeks ago. However, he said, he would certainly look into the matter.