JHANG, June 24: Seventy two high and higher secondary schools in the district are functioning without a head teacher.

This was revealed in a survey report conducted by a local NGO working for the improvement of the standard of education in the district.

Interestingly, the list includes the girls high schools of Sultan Bahu and Shah Jewna city, the home towns of district Nazim and Naib Nazim.

According to the survey report, in Jhang tehsil 22 of 55 boys high schools and eight of 30 girls high and higher secondary schools, in Chiniot tehsil 20 of 42 boys and five of 30 girls schools, and in Shorkot tehsil five of 28 boys high schools and seven of 14 girls high schools are working without any principal or head teacher.

The report says the situation is not created by the shortage of qualified staff. There is a large number of qualified teachers who have been forced to sit idle due to internal politics of the department.

When contacted, executive district officer (education) Mrs Jamila Akthar rejected the report, saying the number was too high.

But she admitted that some schools were without principals due to shortage of qualified staff.

The government was making efforts to appoint the heads and subject specialists in the shortest possible time, she added.