SWABI, Nov 4: Owners of private educational institutions on Sunday demanded of the government to deploy police personnel at these institutions to provide a secure reading environment to students. They expressed concern over the increasing militant attacks on private schools and colleges during the last few months.

Talking to media persons they said in recent months three bombs were exploded in front of a private school and college during night time in Panjpir region. They added a bomb planted near the boundary wall of a school was defused by the bomb disposal squad. The owners, however, vowed to continue imparting education to the students despite all odds.

Asad Qaisar, owner of a leading chain of schools, said the explosions had created panic among the students and dampened their morale. He added those involved in these activities actually wanted to discourage the process of imparting education to the youngsters. “We demand of the government to deploy police at the private educational institutions to provide a secure environment to students.”

Mohammad Khitab, who owns three educational institutions in Topi tehsil, regretted that the government had failed to provide adequate security to them. It is first and foremost responsibility of the government to provide security to the life and property of people, he maintained.

“Educational institutions either in the public sector or private are sacred places which should not be targeted by anyone. We should work for strengthening these institutions,” he demanded.

Saeed Zada, who owns another group, said the main objective of the anti-school elements was to ‘keep our children deprived of education’. He said as children of all sections of society are getting knowledge in the private educational institutions everyone should join hands to protect these institutions.

Meanwhile, the Jamaat-i-Islami leaders have also expressed concern over militant attacks on schools of both private and public sectors. Mohammad Ali, district general secretary of JI, said in the last one and half year about 25 educational institutions had been either blown up or partially damaged by the militants and none of these were so far reconstructed by the government.

He demanded that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government should immediately release funds for reconstruction of the destroyed schools because in various institutions the children had been forced to get education under trees.