TAXILA: The Punjab School Education Department has issued a notification to upgrade elementary schools in Attock and Taxila to high schools, in order to improve the standard of education.

According to District Education Authority Chief Executive Dr Javaid Iqbal: “Secretary schools issued a directive to upgrade 22 elementary schools across the district, to improve the literacy rate of the district, especially among female students and provide quality education for students. Eight schools have been upgraded in tehsil Hazro, five in Pindigheb, four in Fatehjang, two each in tehsil Attock, tehsil Hassanabdal and one in Jand. Ninth and tenth grade education will be imparted to students in the coming academic year, in these newly upgraded schools. Additional rooms are already available in these schools. Therefore, classes of higher grades will be arranged in these elementary schools. Themost senior teachers will be appointed in these schools. Elementary schools consisting of nine classrooms and six teachers have been upgraded to high school and secondary schools willlater be upgraded to higher secondary level in the second phase.”

“Moreover, eight elementary schools will be upgraded in Taxila; most of these schools are located in rural areas of Wah and there was dire need for high schools to be set up,” he added.

Meanwhile, work began on the rehabilitation and widening of the 1.5 kilometre long Mari link road on Friday. Pakistan Tehreek-i-InsafAttock Focal Person Syed Khawar Abbas Bokhari, Executive Engineer (highways) Iftikhar Ahmad along with other PTI local leaders were present on the occasion.

Mr Bokhari said: “Work on this project will be completed within six months at the cost of Rs39.3 million. Funds for this project have been approved under the Annual Development Programme with the special efforts of Public Accounts Committee Punjab Chairman Syed Yawar Abbas Bokhari. This road will be 24 ft wide and on one side of it, a culvert will be built to improve the drainage system. A new gas pipeline is also being laid, to overcome the problem of low gas pressure in Mohala Awan Sharif.”

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2020