HYDERABAD, June 29: The EDO, education, Abdul Majeed Hur, has said 50 million children in Pakistan are deprived of education and 10 per cent of children are doing manual jobs. He was talking to journalists here on Wednesday on the issue of the literacy rate in Hyderabad, Matiari and Tando Mohammad Khan districts.

He said there were 3,168 primary schools, 175 middle schools, 143 secondary schools, 19 higher secondary schools, 15 intermediate colleges, 18 degree colleges and five postgraduate colleges in the defunct Hyderabad district.

He said there were 564,875 children between the age of five and nine years in the defunct district but only 243,354 were going to school. He said 45,320 of 256,431 children between 10 and 12 years of age were attending middle schools.

He conceded that due to political interference, some schools were either lying closed or were in the possession of influential people. However, he said, all schools would be made functional from Aug 1.

He said 148 school buildings were in dilapidated condition and schools were without laboratories and libraries. He, however, said efforts would be made under the literacy programme to improve the situation.

UNION: The employees union (CBA) of the Sindh highways, works and services department has accused senior officers of the department of destroying the highway machinery.