KARACHI, June 3: Despite strict regulations and clear directives by the provincial education department, most of the private educational institutions, both in rural and urban areas of Sindh, lack lab equipment, playgrounds, libraries, transport facilities and teaching kits.

According to a report of Federal Bureau of Statistics, there are over 6,457 private educational institutions in Sindh, out of which only 48 institutions in rural araes offer facilities of science and computer labs to their students.

Only 358 private institutions, including those which offer under and postgraduate degrees in rural Sindh, have the facilities of playgrounds, whereas 1,620 institutions in urban areas of the province have playgrounds or other recreational areas within their premises.

The number of private institutions having libraries is 127 in rural areas, while 2,153 institutions in urban areas have libraries within their premises. Out of 6,457 private educational institutions, only 11 in rural and 76 in urban areas provide the facility of hostels.

To hold seminars, workshops and other extracurricular activities, around 1,499 private institutions have halls or auditoriums at their premises, including 44 in rural areas and 1,455 in urban areas, the report revealed.

Nearly half of the private institutions in the urban areas of the province does not provide teaching kits for reading at all to students.

The report revealed that a majority of the institutions has failed to provide sports facilities for indoor games, as only 731 institutions in urban areas have halls for games, whereas only 33 institutions established in rural areas offer the facility of halls for games to students.

In rural areas of the province, only 37 private institutions provide the facility of audio-visual labs to their students, while in urban areas this facility is available at only 1,983 private educational institutions.

Transport is another major area of concern for students and their parents, as only 28 rural institutions provide transport facilities to their students coming from far-flung areas to attend classes, whereas only 390 institutions in urban areas provide transport to their students.

The report reveals that out of 6,457 private educational institutions all over the province, 5,943 impart general education, 86 are undergraduate professional or technical training institutions, and 42 are professional or technical training institutions.—PPI