KARACHI, Nov 1: The provincial government had obliged the 10,000 residents of Mubarik Village, Keamari, by establishing three schools — two for boys and one for girls — but two of them virtually offer no education eversince their becoming ‘operational’ some three years back. A girls’ primary school and a boys’ secondary school, in fact, exist in the Education department’s records only because there are an unspecified number of teachers and support staff who are being paid emoluments for the service they provide to virtually invisible students.

An inquiry into these ‘ghost’ schools affair was conducted and the report was submitted to the then Education Minister, Prof Anita Ghulam Ali. All that could be done in the light of the report’s findings was the creation of a facts-file which may have been put up with a very appropriate and competent officer’s table pending an appropriate action.

Repeated complaints made and reminders sent to the Education department as well as higher authorities by the parents of students, as well as some elected representatives of the area, have so far failed to draw the attention of any sincere official to the plight of such a big number of education seekers. These children have been made to be taught only by people with a spirit of social welfare.

Generally, people of Mubarak village are farmers or fishermen by profession and, obviously, unable to afford educational requirements of their children if the academic facilities are not sponsored by the government.

The parents’ keen interest in educating their siblings can be gauged from the fact that the teachers, available at the only-functioning boys school in the village, had to accommodate students of the inoperative girls school by combining the two disciplines. Fortunately, the combined school is functioning properly despite having the double strength and incorporating co-education.

Apart from the satisfactory teaching at the functioning school in this village, no basic facilities such as toilets, drinking water, etc. have been provided to any of the three school buildings.

A girls primary school was established in the village about four years back at a cost of Rs500,000 but the project had met the same fate as no woman teacher was made available. Furthermore, the school building was partially turned into a cattle-pen and its doors and windows were taken away by some unscrupulous elements, says Mohammad Haroon, a former councillor of the area.

The findings of the inquiry into the whole affair suggested that all the rooms of the secondary school were without any students and not a single staff member was present when the school was visited by the person entrusted with the probe. He also conveyed to the relevant authorities that no office record, pertaining to the functioning of the school, was available.

The residents of Mubarik Village have now invited the Executive District Officer, Education, Prof Raees Alvi, to visit the village and do the needful as the City government, provincial government and Central government all bear the responsibility of providing education to the citizens.—PPI