LARKANA: The Sindh Human Rights Comm­ission’s chairperson Iqbal Ahmed Detho on Saturday drew attention of education department officers to shabby condition of school buildings in Larkana district and urged them to solarise the them by using funds of School Management Com­mittees (SMCs).

Mr Detho said at a meeting with education officers of Larkana district, after having visited girls’ and boys’ schools in towns and their peripheries across the district, laid stress on the fundamental right to education as enshrined in Article 25 (a) of the Constitution and reaffirmed SHRC’s unwavering dedication to upholding human rights in line with national and international laws.

He said that by actively engaging with communities, the SHRC had addressed core issues related to education, healthcare and disaster response and thus significantly contributed to the overall wellbeing of people of Sindh. “We have taken decisive steps to reinforce the commission’s commitment to human rights,” he said.

Addressing education officers, including director of education (colleges), district education officers and taluka education officers for primary and secondary education, Mr Detho pointed out to lack of basic facilities in majority of schools where students were seen getting education without the facility of electricity or solar power.

He said that he witnessed dire state of educational institutions during his visits to government girls’ and boys’ primary school in Mahota village, government primary schools in the villages of Jatt Bhutta and Sallar Bhutta, primary school in Nazar Detho village, and boys degree college in Naudero town.

He urged activation of SMCs and highlighted the need to empower local communities and philanthropists as outlined in Section 16 of the Sindh Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2013.

Mr Detho explained SHRC’s broader objective of fostering resilient communities and safeguarding fundamental rights in Larkana district.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2024