NAROWAL: The district education authorities are ‘forcibly’ collecting money from teachers to make a contribution to funds for IDPs.

Expressing apprehensions about the move, many teachers say the education department officials have started collecting money from the academics without giving them any receipt.

They are collecting Rs400 from each primary school teacher, Rs600 from each elementary school teacher, Rs800 from each senior school teacher and Rs1,000 from the head of each school.

It is learnt that Markaz officers of the department sent the collected money to the EDO through cross cheques in favour of CM fund for IDPs but the EDO refused to receive them and demanded that cash be submitted.

Meanwhile, teachers have expressed their reservations about the government move in view of the fact that the Punjab government has not issued any such direction.

EDO (Education) Muhammad Ghias Abid said the Punjab government would deduct money for IDPs from the salaries of the teachers while the cash amount collected by Narowal’s education department would be sent to the IDPs separately.

The district government, he said, was issuing receipts for all the donations received for the IDPs. He said he had sent a cheque of Rs1.9 million for the IDPs.

Published in Dawn, August 2nd, 2014