LAHORE, Jan 7: The previous Punjab government’s ‘flagship’ programme of providing missing facilities to all schools is yet to start showing results, while the incumbent government has neither enhanced funding nor able to pressurise district governments to allocate maximum funds for the uplift of government schools.

A survey of schools in the provincial capital itself did not show any significant change as almost every school’s teachers and students complained about lack of facilities ranging from furniture to classrooms and toilets to potable water.

One of the teachers of a school in Mughalpura said: “We do not know where funds are being utilised as we are yet to see any infrastructure development in the school.”

During a visit to pre-partition yet well-reputed Government Islamia High School in Cantonment, which is catering to some 1,200 students, it was shocking to see the double-storey building in a shambles. The building had developed cracks not only in walls but in roofs as well and had become dangerous place for students. A number of classes were also being conducted on a rooftop and students were sitting on the floor.

Another teacher said neither the provincial government nor the city district government of Lahore (CDGL) paid attention to the school despite repeated requests. He said the entire school building had developed cracks, almost every classroom’s doors were broken, most windowpanes broken and above all no whitewash for the last three years.

Another teacher said the school administration had reportedly received some funds for the whitewash but it did not take any initiative considering that the government might demolish the otherwise dilapidated building. “No development work has been carried out in this school, though the government was implementing World Bank-funded missing facilities provision programme for the last four years,” he said.

During a visit to a government primary school in Sehjpal village, a few kilometres away from Bhatta Chowk on Bedian Road, it was learnt that school was shelterless and was operating in a Janazgah (funeral place) adjacent to local graveyard.

The school has 126 boys and girls students, most of whom are compelled to sit on the floor. It has four teachers against six sanctioned seats. Schoolteacher Tariq Mahmood said the school was operating since 1997 and was shifted to Janazgah one-and-a-half-year ago. He said the residents had already donated three kanals of land and demanded that the government should construct a purpose-built school.

He said the school’s Class-I students did not receive free textbooks from the government, while the Class-III students were not given Atlas book.

Mahmood also said that there were around 950 families in the village and the two primary schools, another school for girls, were not able to accommodate all children. He also said that there was no high school, neither for boys nor for girls, in various villages together including Sehjpal, Malikpur, Alpha Jhuggian, Choota Gohawa and Bara Gohawa. For a high school, he said, the village residents were ready to donate some 15 kanals from 117 kanals of shamlot land (land for common use).

Education EDO Lahore Malik Abdul Rahman claimed that a few hundred schools had been provided missing facilities, while a fresh survey of schools was being conducted for the selection of schools to provide missing facilities this year. The EDO said during last four years schools were not equipped with all missing facilities, which did not give a wholesome impact. From now onwards, he said, the schools would be provided with all required facilities.

This year, Rehman said, the provincial government had provided Rs150 million, while the CDGL had allocated Rs1.5 billion for the education sector including up-gradation of primary, middle, high and higher secondary schools. He said the CDGL had taken up 195 ongoing and 383 new development projects in schools. He also counted a few schools in the city, where all missing facilities had been provided.

A Programme Monitoring and Implementation Unit (PMIU) official told Dawn that there were 62,090 schools in the province having enrolment of 11.186 million students. In Lahore, there were 1,321 schools.

Till November last year, the PMIU official said the NLC had completed 2,048 schemes of providing missing facilities in schools with a total cost of Rs3.737 billion. Overall, there were 3,511 schemes, where missing facilities would be provided through the NLC. While, the respective district governments would be allocating their own funds for the provision of missing facilities in schools which include – building, electricity, drinking water, lavatory, boundary-wall, furniture and others.

In Lahore, the official said, the NLC was executing 68 schemes out of which it had completed and handed over 50 schemes. He said the PMIU did not monitor the development schemes for the provision of missing facilities in schools by respective district governments. “The PMIU only receives the final data at the end of the year and includes it in its database,” he added.

Punjab Education Secretary (schools) Nadeem Ashraf admitted that it was true that there was no visible change in the outlook of public sector schools in the province.

He said the provincial government had this year again allocated Rs4 billion for missing facilities, of which, the Lahore district had been given Rs150 million.

He, however, said the respective district governments were not allocating required budgets at their level for the provision of missing facilities in schools.

Ashraf said the education department had this year given a “Whole School Project” in which, each district had been asked to pick one school and did not leave it until it would be provided with all required missing facilities.

The education secretary said the department had also empowered respective school councils to utilise their funds for the purchase of furniture as well as maintenance and repair of the school property.

A functionary in Pervaiz Elahi’s government said the previous government had launched this mega project assisted by the World Bank. He said the previous government’s three years’ working on the project had focused on the development of schools ranging from infrastructure development to improving teachers’ quality, strengthening curricula and evaluation system.

He said the World Bank was providing Rs5 billion and the provincial government was contributing Rs2 billion each year for the up-gradation of schools in the province. He said the government had spent Rs21 billion in three years. However, he said, the requirement of funds for the up-gradation of all 62,090 schools was assessed to the tune of Rs90 billion.

“A change in the outlook of public sector schools will become visible gradually, provided the incumbent government will continue funding according to the plan and ensuring cent per cent utilisation of funds with full transparency,” he added.