LANDI KOTAL (Khyber Agency), May 2: The education department in Khyber Agency has terminated the services of 20 teachers of different community schools in the remote Tirah valley. The department has also relocated seven women teachers in Landi Kotal and Jamrud tehsils to their original schools after a probe against them conducted by the assistant agency education officer (female).

Bahadar Khan, an official of the Fata education department, said they had received complaints from area residents against the teachers posted at various community schools.

He said that many teachers had been found absent from their duties during surprise visits and some of them had been having dual postings at both community and government schools, and drawing double salaries. They had been forced to resign from one, said the official.

He said the department was saving up to Rs200,000 per month after the termination of 20 community schoolteachers. A community schoolteacher draws Rs3,421 per month and there are at least 150 community schools in Tirah.

Bahadar Khan said that earlier his department had terminated 27 teachers of various communal schools in 2004, due to negligence from their duties.

The teachers relieved from jobs include Akhtar Munir and Aftab Alam of the Boys Community School(BCS) Kheyalbat Kally, Salim Raza of the BCS Bahadar Sher Kally, Sher Muhammad and Sahib Gul of the BCS Kheyal Gul Malikdinkhel, Tariq Khan of the BCS Khan Sahib Kally, Riaz Ahmad of the BCS Adam Khan Kally, Zamin Shah of the BCS Gulmin Kally, Hazrat Karim and Iqbal of the BCS Awal Karim Kally, Hashim Khan of the BCS Shahzada Kally, Younas of the BCS Taweez Madokhel Kally, Shahid Ali and Sardar Wali of Ashna Gul Kally, Said Mohammad Shah of the BCS Khan Afzal Kally, Mohammad Khan of the BCS Tangu Kally, Shah Faisal of the BCS Sarwar Khan Kally, Ihsanullah of the BCS Mughul Khan Kally, Mosam Khan of the BCS Sarfaraz Kally and Millat Khan of the BCS Nek Mohammad Kally.

The department issued termination letters after they failed to respond to show-cause notices.

In the female section, the department relocated Ms Saeeda Imtiaz from the Government Girls Primary School (GGPS) Nasar Kally Jamrud to the GGPS Hazrat Wali Kally in Jamrud; Ms Farida from the GGPS Raza Khan Kally in Jamrud to the GGPS Kum Shalman in Landi Kotal; Waiza Begum from the GGPS Walayat Shah, Jamrud, to GGPS Lwarha Mena; Ms Dilshad from the GGPS Kata Kushta to the GGPS Ayub Kally, Landi Kotal; Ms Kherul Wara from the GGPS Shah Kas Jamrud to the GGPS Kum Shalman; Ms Zakia Minhaj from the GGPS Hazrat Wali Kally Jamrud to the Government Girls Middle School Shah Wali Kally Landi Kotal and Rubina Shaheen from the GGPS Ayub Kally Landi Kotal to the GGPS Kata Khusta in Jamrud.

All these women teachers were drawing salaries from their schools of posting, but working in the institutions of their choice with the connivance of a former woman AAEO.