ISLAMABAD, July 22: The ministry of education is contemplaing to start nursery classes in government schools to reduce burden on private institutions, a source in the ministry told Dawn on Tuesday.

He said after the implementation of this decision in the federal capital, all provincial education departments would be directed to follow the suit.

The launch of nursery classes in government schools would discourage opening of illegal and low-standard schools in residential localities, he added.

He said Education Minister Zubaida Jalal had directed the department concerned in the ministry to conduct a survey for starting the classes.

The source said some years ago most of the government schools had nursery classes, but they were abolished due to unknown reasons.

In a recent meeting with CDA Chairman Chaudhry Abdul Rauf, the education minister had said every government school should start nursery classes, the source said.

The CDA chairman told Dawn that the education minister had agreed that all illegal schools set up in the capital after 1999 should be closed.

He said the minister had realized that the closing of schools in the residential areas would affect the studies of junior students and, therefore, the beginning of nursery classes in government schools was imperative.

The CDA, he added, had started a drive against all schools established in violation of rules.

He said the ministry of education had been informed about the CDA policy that all schools established after 1999 in residential localities were considered illegal. The ministry of education has no objection over this decision, he added.

The official said the authority had served notices on all the 66 schools for non-conforming use of residential buildings and directed their owners to shift the institutions to sector H-11.

The CDA chairman said the owners of the regularized private schools had also been directed to shift their schools on double roads of their respective sectors.