SWABI, Nov 10: English and Urdu are compulsory subjects for the college students but, for the last five years, the provincial directorate of colleges has left the students of the Government Girls Degree College in Maneri to study the two subjects themselves.

Pleas and demands of their parents to the directorate to fill the vacancies of English and Urdu teachers in their college have gone unheeded.

Students and academic staff of the college told Dawn on Wednesday that the absence of teachers put great strain on them.

They said the part-time teachers the principal of the college arranged occasionally was not the solution to the problem as these teachers did not take interest in imparting knowledge to the students.

“It is not a job for part timers. We need permanent teachers who have a stake in being earnest in their job,” said the students. Their problem is compounded because they cannot even seek tuition.

“There is no culture of tuition particularly among girls who are not allowed by their parents to avail of such facility”, says a teacher.

Sources said some lawmakers also met with the District Coordination Officer Jabar Khan to ask him to fill the vacant posts as soon as possible.

“He (DCO) told the lawmakers that he had taken up the issue of vacant posts lying unfulfilled since 2005 with the officials concerned.

He said the officials assured him of filling the posts,” said the sources while quoting DCO.

Parents and students said if the required teachers were not posted to the college they would hold protest demonstrations and the district administration would be responsible if any untoward incident happened.

They criticised politicians, saying, the latter was not interested in resolving people's problems.