CHINIOT: Two expatriates have donated Rs1 million each to the Government High School, Rajoa, where they were once students back in the 60s, after seeing its pictures on social media sites.

The school was established in 1873 in the village, some 15 kilometre south of Chiniot, as a primary school. It was upgraded to the middle school in 1920 and to the high school in 1963. Until 2015, it had just seven classrooms, one science laboratory and one headmaster office.

The century-old building was declared dangerous for human usage. Of the 13 classes, 11 started sitting under trees. The education department directed the school to dismantle the building for which the buildings department estimated that Rs250,000 would be required as labour charges. The demolition could not be done due to the shortage of funds In 2017, the District Education Authority (DEA) decided to rehabilitate the historical building on a self-help basis that was done in February 2018.

The rehabilitation work made five classrooms fit for sitting, while six classes still sit under trees.

The pictures of rehabilitated classrooms and the inaugural ceremony were shared on Facebook by the students and teachers. They caught the attention of two old students of this institution, Dr Abul Hassan and Dr Fiaz, who are in London and Chicago.

Dr Hasan told Dawn by phone he studied in the school from 1960 to 1965. Both Dr Hasan and Dr Fiaz donated Rs1 million each to the school.

DEA Chief Executive Officer Liaqat Ali Nasir said the authority had preserved the heritage with the help of philanthropists. He said four new classrooms would be built with the Rs2 million donation. He thanked both doctors for the donation and said social media connected us with the old students.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2018