KARACHI, Oct 7: Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim said that raising the standard of education and eradicating corruption was among his top most priorities, as the province could not prosper until the improvement in the quality of education.

He said this while addressing the officers of education department and members of Chief Minister's Monitoring Teams from all the districts of the province at the Chief Minister’s House here Saturday.

The chief minister said that the Executive District Officers (Education) would also work as members of monitoring teams constituted by him in their respective districts. These teams would monitor the performance of primary, secondary and high schools and the officials of education department.

Dr Arbab said that the members of these teams had been nominated without any political consideration therefore they should also work with the same spirit to improve the quality of education in the province.

The chief minister asked the monitoring teams to pay surprise visits to schools and education offices and submit their reports to the CM House. “The reports so submitted would be considered final,” he made it clear.

Dr Arbab asked the monitoring teams to see if 10 teachers were posted at a single school. “In that case, those extra teachers would have to be transferred from there”, he added.

He said that we must curb the culture of recommendations and for that it was necessary to examine the education system at UC level.

“Teachers would be appointed on merit basis in Sindh and no pressure in this respect would be accepted at any cost,” Dr Arbab stated.

The chief minister informed that the monitoring teams would be provided with offices in each district and asked all the team members to ensure that there was no smoking or chewing of tobacco or betel nuts and other such things in educational institutions.

Alleging that the officials of the education department were on the top in corruption, he said that the government had allocated Rs12 billion for the education sector but it looked as if nothing was being utilised.

“The standard of education in Sindh was better in the past. Now it has declined to such an extent that a youth claiming to be educated can not even write an application in English,” he noted.

The chief minister asked the team members to identify ghost teachers and ghost schools occupied by influential persons of the area so that stern action could be taken against them.

“Pay visits to all the schools and write down notes and impressions and take strict action against those teachers found serving as the servants of landlords,” he directed.

The chief minister further said that all the teachers across the province would have to appear in written test and those failing in the test would lose annual increments.

He hoped that the situation might improve if Rs12.70 billion was spent properly in the education sector and added that the government would provide free textbooks to 4.7 million students from class one to ten besides Rs1,000 per month stipend to girl students from class five to ten.

The chief minister directed the authorities concerned to take appropriate steps for opening up of 2,900 closed schools and also to prepare database of villages devoid of schools so that schools could be opened there.

He said that the government planned to improve condition of the existing 43,000 primary schools and opening 120 new schools in the province with introducing English from class one. An English medium school would also be established in each taluka, he added.

Sindh Education Minister Dr Hamida Khuhro and other officials were also present.—PPI