PESHAWAR: Teachers and students of government colleges staged protest demonstrations in different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday against the decision to outsource the under-enrolment colleges and the proposal to link the promotion of teachers to MPhil degree and research work in their respective subjects.

The students converged on roads while the teachers boycotted classes. They demanded of the government to withdraw the decision of outsourcing the colleges having lower enrolment, mostly located in the far-off areas of the province.

The government has decided to outsource the under-enrolment colleges to the private sector under Public-Private Partnership mode. The provincial government will pay the fee of students in the outsourced colleges while the private partner will arrange the teaching staff and run the administrative affairs.

The teachers also turned down the proposed amendment to the service rules, conditioning the promotion of college teachers with MPhil degree and publication of research papers in their respective subjects.

Teachers also reject proposal to link their promotion to MPhil degree

In Peshawar, the students of Government Superior Science College blocked the busy Ring Road near Dir Colony, chanting slogans against the provincial government.

President ofKhyber Pakhtunkhwa Professors, Lecturers and Librarians Association (KPPLLA) Abdul Hameed Afridi said that the body had given a clear message to the government that any attempt to ‘weaken’ the higher education sector and take away the autonomy of the institutions wouldn’t be tolerated under any circumstances.

In a statement, he said that the decisions like outsourcing of colleges and proposed amendments to the service rules were tantamount to playing with the dignity of educational institutions, the fundamental rights of teachers and the future of students.

The teaching community demanded of the government that if this policy was not withdrawn immediately and a lasting solution was not found through negotiations, then the protest movement would be further expanded.

Mr Afridi said that the struggle of teachers was not only for their rights but also for the better future of students, quality education and the protection of a strong education system. “We will not back down on this mission at any cost,” he said.

Talking to Dawn, Hameed Afridi said that students staged protests in Mardan, Charsadda, Dargai, Mingora, Matta, Batkhaila, Abbottabad and other parts of the province. He said that the action committee, which KPPLLA set up to pursue their case, would meet on Monday to consider how to bring intensity in their protest.

Meanwhile, students from various colleges in Dera Ismail Khan on Saturday demonstrated against the provincial government’s decision to outsource colleges and schools. The protesters carried placards and banners inscribed with slogans against the government’s decision. They chanted slogans against the government, declaring that the ‘privatisation’ of schools and colleges would never be accepted.

They warned if the decision was not withdrawn the scope of protests would be expanded and the Chief Minister’s House would be besieged.

Students emphasised that education was a fundamental right, and privatisation would endanger the future of children from poor and middle-class families.

Meanwhile, KPPLLA also rejected the decision, stating that outsourcing of colleges and ‘unconstitutional’ amendments in the service rules were tantamount to undermining the higher education sector and depriving teachers of their basic rights.

Speaking at a protest, the association’s Dera division president Prof Ihsanullah Khan Gandapur, said: “This struggle is not just for the rights of teachers, but for the better future of students, quality education, and the protection of a strong education system.”

Published in Dawn, October 5th, 2025