MITHI: ‘Tharparkar Educational Conference’ was organised in Islamkot by the local chapter of the Sindhi Shagird Tehreek on Sunday.

Speakers at the conference deplored “violation of merit” in the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC), the privatisation of Sindh’s educational institutions through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, and increasing educational fees across Sindh.

The conference was attended by District President of Awami Tehreek Advocate Dayal Sahrai, District President of the Sindhi Shagird Tehreek Narain Sindhi, Obhayo Junejo, educationist Sadique Dal, Qurban Unnar, Pardeep Gulab, Dileep Bheel and other political and social activists.

Sindhi Shagird Tahreek leaders told the audience that the Sindh government is responsible for the destruction of educational institutions. “By selling jobs through the SPSC, it has trampled upon merit and disappointed capable and hardworking students,” one of the speakers said.

Advocate Dayal Sahrai said that the government has turned job recruitment into a marketplace — fixing prices and selling positions through favouritism and political recommendations. Those appointed under this corrupt system further destroyed institutions instead of reforming them.

Due to growing inflation, the people of Sindh are being forced into hunger, while looting of Sindh’s resources, corruption and violation of merit continued unchecked. These injustices are creating hopelessness and despair among the youth.

Through the Public-Private Partnership model, education is being transformed into a business. Billions of rupees granted for educational reforms through international funds and grants are being embezzled. Instead of improvement, tuition and admission fees are continuously increasing.

On one hand, the majority of children from the working class remain out of school, and government schools lack even the most basic facilities. Acting under a global imperialist agenda, the government is now privatising even the few public institutions that are functioning somehow. On the other hand, both public and private universities and higher education institutions have imposed exorbitant fees, closing the doors of education to poor students. Moreover, corruption and nepotism in institutions like the SPSC have deeply demoralised Sindh’s youth.

According to the latest figures from the Pakistan Economic Survey, Sindh’s literacy rate is 57.54%, and nearly 800,000 children are out of school. Instead of implementing essential reforms, the Sindh government continues to receive billions of rupees in the name of educational assistance from international organisations.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2025